Department for Transport

Driving under Influence

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the Government's first anti-drink drive television advert.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The department’s THINK! road safety campaign recently launched its 50 years of drink drive campaigning on the 7th November. The campaign has used the 50 year milestone to mark the progress made in reducing drink drive deaths on our road while underlining that – with 230 lives lost in 2012 – there is still a long way to go. One death caused by drink driving is one death too many.

Transport: Stafford

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps he has taken to (a) tackle traffic congestion and (b) improve public transport in Stafford.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Tackling congestion and improving public transport are key priorities for this Government and as such the Government has taken several steps which will benefit Stafford, including: · Providing £4.2m from the Local Sustainable Transport Fund, between 2011 and 2015, to address peak hour congestion in Stafford, encouraging commuters to make more sustainable travel habits and reduce car use. Staffordshire County Council will also receive £985k in revenue grant in 2015/16 for a project that includes further bus interchange and rail network enhancements, and service information improvements. · Providing £1.7m from the Local Pinch Point Fund for the Beacon Business Park scheme, Stafford, which aimed to ease congestion at the A518 Weston Road/ Blackheath Lane junction. · Staffordshire County Council, as the relevant Transport and Highway Authority, has also received £76.906m for Highways Maintenance funding over the period 2011/12 -2014/15. This included funding through the Pothole Fund and weather recovery and £19.769m of Integrated Transport Block Funding. · Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire Local Enterprise Partnership has also secured £82.3m from the Government’s Local Growth fund to support economic growth in the area – with £13.6m of funding confirmed for 2015-16. This includes £24.3m towards the Stafford Western Access Route which aims to reduce traffic congestion into and around Stafford town centre. · Announcing a direct award contract with West Coast Trains Limited (Virgin) in June 2014 that will run for 2 years 9 months up to April 2017. The new contract will bring £35 million worth of passenger benefits, including increased car parking at Stafford.

Roads: Accidents

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate he has made of the number of traffic accidents caused by horses and ponies straying onto the highway.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The information requested is not held by the Department. The Department only collects information on ridden horses on the pubic highway that are involved in personal injury road accidents. This information is published in Table RAS30016 in annual report entitled "Reported road casualties in Great Britain: 2013". This report has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses and is available online at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/reported-road-casualties-great-britain-annual-report-2013 and the attached table is at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/ras30-reported-casualties-in-road-accidents#table-ras30016Further statistics are available on animals in the carriageway which contribute in injury accident but it is not possible to identify what type of animal was involved. This information is also published in Table RAS50001 also attached and available online at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/ras50-contributory-factors#table-ras50001 



UIN214627-casualties by severity & road user type 
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UIN214627- contributory factors_reported accidents
(Excel SpreadSheet, 168 KB)

Motor Vehicles: Licensing

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on how many occasions the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has (a) written to or contacted and (b) initiated legal proceedings against sellers of motor vehicles for failing to use form V5C/3 to notify DVLA of the transfer of a vehicle to a new owner in each of the last five years.

Mr John Hayes: The registered keeper of a vehicle must notify the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) that they have disposed of it using the Vehicle Registration Certificate (V5C) or otherwise in writing. If the keeper fails to do so and someone then applies to become the new keeper, the DVLA will issue an automatic enforcement letter. The letter advises customers to pay an out of court settlement of £55 (or £35 if paid within 17 calendar days). If payment is not received a court summons will be served. The table below shows the number of letters that the DVLA has issued for failure to notify disposal of a vehicle, the number of summonses served to attend court and the outcome: Financial YearEnforcement Letters IssuedSummonses ServedSuccessful Prosecutions2009-10220,76842,85833,8692010-11187,46348,14039,7332011-12177,18954,53145,1232012-13149,56543,47538,2792013-14150,21135,53927,7592014-present day93,01110,01910,821 Some summonses may not proceed to prosecution as they may be withdrawn following further consideration, such as obtaining additional information from the customer. The outcome of some prosecutions might not be determined until the following financial year from when the summons was served.

Motor Vehicles: Safety Belts

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will bring forward proposals to revise the Motor Vehicles (Wearing of Seat Belts) Regulations 1993 (S.I., 1993/76), as amended, in order to provide greater clarity in respect of the exemptions for (a) taxi drivers, (b) bus drivers, (c) coach drivers and (d) HGV vehicle drivers wearing seat belts.

Mr Robert Goodwill: There are very few exemptions for wearing a seat belt if there is one fitted. Taxi drivers have an exemption when they are plying for hire or carrying a fare, and delivery drivers do not have to wear one if they are making deliveries or collections that are less than 50m apart. If a bus or coach is adapted for standing passengers then there may not be a seat belt fitted, however, if there is one, it should be worn. Wearing a seat belt reduces the risk of serious injury in the event of an accident. Rules 99-102 of The Official Highway Code sets out seat belt requirements including exemptions, as does seat belt advice on www.gov.uk, so we do not believe that further clarification is necessary.

Buses: Safety Belts

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations he has received on the definition of (a) urban buses and (b) coaches in the Motor Vehicles (Wearing of Seat Belts) Regulations 1993 (S.I., 1993/76), as amended.

Mr Robert Goodwill: We have not received any representations about the definition of urban buses or coaches. There have been a small number of letters over a sustained period of time to Ministers and the Department about this subject, particularly about children wearing seat belts in buses and coaches.

EU External Trade: USA

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether UK domestic rail policy is being considered as part of the Government's negotiations on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.

Mr John Hayes: The UK has a fully liberalised rail market and we welcome interest from suitably qualified participants in the market from around the world, including the United States. Domestic rail policy has therefore not been a significant consideration in the negotiations. However, successful negotiation of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership will enable UK-based members of the rail supply chain to compete more successfully in the US market. We would like to see relaxation in the ‘Buy America’ policy which inhibits the opportunities for rail exports.

EU External Trade: USA

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions and with whom his Department has had on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.

Claire Perry: There are a number of transport related areas we want to see agreed as part of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. The top priority is the harmonisation of global vehicle construction regulations. We would like to see enhanced market access in the aviation and maritime sectors and the relaxation in the ‘Buy America’ policy which inhibits the opportunities for rail exports. Officials have been actively involved in discussions with EU and US counterparts, particularly in relation to taking forward our top priority.

EU External Trade: USA

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership on UK rail policy.

Mr John Hayes: Successful negotiation of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership will enable UK-based members of the rail supply chain to compete more successfully in the US market. We would like to see relaxation in the ‘Buy America’ policy which inhibits the opportunities for rail exports. My officials have been actively involved in discussions with EU and US counterparts.

Travel

Dr Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what predictions are made by the National Transport Model from 2015 onwards for the (a) average number of trips and stages made annually per person in England and (b) average length of trips by transport mode in the (i) low, (ii) medium and (iii) high growth scenarios.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Holding answer received on 21 November 2014



Forecasts of trip by mode and distance were last published by the Department in Road Transport Forecasts 2011 athttps://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/4243/road-transport-forecasts-2011-results.pdf The Department has more recently in 2013 produced estimates for the whole of GB using the National Transport Model (NTM). The trip information has not been published but is set out in the tables below. Average Trips per person annually by mode (GB, RTF13 central forecast) Annual trips  Walk  Cycle  Car Driver  Car Pgr  Bus  Rail  Total  2015  307.422.1447.6231.886.324.41,119.72020  302.421.1465.3225.880.023.71,118.22025  298.020.1483.8219.073.322.91,117.22030  295.719.9491.6214.071.223.41,115.82035  291.420.5500.8212.466.423.11,114.62040  290.220.5507.0211.864.023.71,117.2  Average length of trips by mode (GB, RTF13 central forecast) miles  Walk  Cycle  Car Driver  Car Pgr  Bus  Rail  Total  2015  0.82.59.09.97.824.77.02020  0.82.49.110.07.924.77.12025  0.82.39.210.18.124.67.22030  0.82.39.210.18.024.77.32035  0.82.29.210.18.224.77.32040  0.82.29.210.18.524.87.4  Notes on the tables: These are for personal trips based on main mode of travel. The NTM does not produce mode information for different stages of the same trip.These forecasts are based on the central forecast in the Road Traffic Forecasts 2013 (see https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/road-transport-forecasts-2013. NTM forecasts of trips by mode for the high and low demand scenarios have not been produced.The NTM Road Traffic Forecasts should not be viewed as what we think will actually happen in the future, or what we want the future to look like. They are based on our understanding of the way people make travel choices, the expected path of the key drivers at the time the forecast is made and assume no change in government policy beyond that already announced.The forecasts do not account for the Departments Cycling Delivery Plan, as this is still in development.The NTM is not the Department’s primary forecasting tool for Rail. Therefore the forecasts may not match with Rail forecasts the Department has published elsewhere.

Ports: EU Action

Mr Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with representatives of the European Commission on the prospects of the UK receiving an exemption for competitive domestic ports from the proposed European Port Services Regulations.

Mr John Hayes: I spoke to the previous Transport Commissioner, Siim Kallas, on this issue. In the course of that discussion I explained that the UK has the most competitive and least subsidised ports sector in the entire EU, and that I believe we shall make a compelling case for a competitive market exemption applicable to key provisions of the proposed port services Regulation. Now that we have gained the exemption provision in the General Approach, officials continue to take this work forward and I remain committed to ensuring that the unique character of the UK ports sector is recognised.

Ports: EU Action

Mr Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with (a) port operators and (b) relevant trade unions since the meeting of the Council of Ministers to discuss the proposed European Port Services Regulations on 8 October 2014.

Mr John Hayes: I have had several discussions on this subject with port operators and trade union representatives, both before and since the Council of Ministers on 8 October.

Ports: EU Action

Mr Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what bilateral discussions he has had with his counterparts in other EU member states on the proposed European Port Services Regulations since the meeting of the Council of Ministers on 8 October 2014.

Mr John Hayes: I, other Ministers and officials continue to engage actively with counterparts in other Member States as this dossier proceeds through further stages of the legislative process, also including early engagement with Members of the European Parliament, now that roles within the Transport and Tourism Committee have begun to take shape and the Committee's priorities are being formulated. In addition, I plan to meet with MEPs personally to discuss this matter.

Ports: EU Action

Mr Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the possible scope of any exemption for UK competitive ports from the proposed European Port Services Regulations.

Mr Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proposals the Government has drawn up to apply for an exemption for competitive UK ports from the proposed European Port Services Regulations.

Mr John Hayes: The Government intends to apply on behalf of the whole UK ports industry for exemption from the utilities and concessions Directives, which would also encompass relevant provisions of the port services Regulation, assuming that this is eventually adopted containing such provisions along the lines that are included in the Council General Approach text that was agreed on 8 October.

Severn River Crossing

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects the Severn bridges to return to public ownership.

Mr John Hayes: The Severn River Crossings concession is expected to end in 2018. At the end of the concession, the Severn Crossings will revert to public ownership.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Travel

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, for what purposes his Department has funded travel by Eurostar in 2014 to date.

Kris Hopkins: The information requested is not routinely recorded and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.The Department's work which relates to the European Union, such as the European Development Fund, and the Council of Europe, necessitates overseas travel.

Non-domestic Rates

Guy Opperman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of how many small firms and shops in (a) England and (b) the Northumberland County Council area have been affected by the recent reduction in business rates.

Kris Hopkins: We have introduced a £1 billion business rate support package for 2014-15 including: – a 2% cap in the Retail Price Index increase in the small business rates multiplier – a retail discount of £1,000 for around 300,000 shops, pubs and restaurants with rateable values below £50,000 – a 12 month extension of small business rate relief doubling, benefitting over half a million businesses – a 50 per cent discount for new occupants of long-term vacant shops, and – allowing ratepayers to pay bills over 12 instalments.In the attached tables, Table 1 give figures for Northumberland Unitary Authority and Table 2 gives figures for England.



Tables
(Word Document, 30.54 KB)

Housing: Disability

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what plans his Department has to increase the number of wheelchair-accessible properties in the UK; and whether it plans to improve the allocation of wheelchair-accessible properties to wheelchair users in the social and affordable housing sector.

Stephen Williams: National Planning Policy makes it clear that local planning authorities should plan for a mix of housing based on current and future demographic trends, market trends and the needs of different groups in the community, such as people with disabilities. The Government is introducing wheelchair accessible and adaptable housing standards into Part M (Access to and use of buildings) of the Building Regulations which local authorities will be able to require of new development in order to ensure that these evidenced needs are suitably met. The Government believes it is important that people who require accessible housing are given the right level of priority under a council’s housing allocation scheme, and that councils and social landlords are able to make the best use of social and affordable rented housing in their area, including accommodation which is accessible or has been adapted. Through the Localism Act we have retained the statutory ‘reasonable preference’ requirements which ensure that priority is given to those who need to move on medical and welfare grounds (including grounds relating to a disability).

Housing: Construction

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will estimate the net effect of New Homes Bonus allocations on council budgets in the 50 (a) most and (b) least deprived council areas.

Kris Hopkins: Since its introduction, councils have received £2.2 billion in funding from the New Homes Bonus, rewarding the delivery of 550,000 newly-built homes and conversions, including over 160,000 affordable homes, and for bringing 93,000 empty homes back into use. Figures for the aggregate funding given to each local authority can be found at: www.gov.uk/government/policies/increasing-the-number-of-available-homes/supporting-pages/new-homes-bonus The hon. Member’s own local authority of North Tyneside has so far received £4.6 million. We will be publishing a formal evaluation report on the New Homes Bonus in due course.

Local Government Finance: North East

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the average change in spending power for (a) all councils and (b) local authorities in the North East between 2013-14 and 2014-15.

Kris Hopkins: The average reduction in spending power between 2013-14 and 2014-15 for England excluding Great London Authority was 2.9%. My Department does not produce regional statistics. The local government finance system does not operate on a regional basis, and the Government Office Regions have been abolished.Figures for individual local authorities are published at the link below:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/277394/Spending_Power_by_dwelling_final_settlement.xls

Council Tax

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect of changes to council tax resource equalisation on areas with high deprivation and low council tax bases.

Kris Hopkins: In setting the baseline for the business rates retention scheme we took into account the needs and resources of local authorities. We restored the relative resources component of the system to the same level as in 2010-11. The methodology for the new Business Rates Retention scheme was set out as part of the announcement of the 2013-14 Local Government Finance settlement. We have been clear that the main emphasis of the Local Government Finance settlement has now changed, so that instead of being focused on needs it now incentivises growth. Unlike the previous approach to local government funding the new approach offers all local authorities the opportunity to pursue local growth through locally retained business rates and through the New Homes Bonus. Revenue Support Grant is just one component of the resources available to enable local authorities to pursue their locally set spending priorities.

Community Assets

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what nominations he has received for assets of community value under the Localism Act 2011.

Stephen Williams: Communities which wish to nominate an asset of community value send their nomination to the relevant local authority in England in which the asset is located, not to Central Government. More information about how communities can nominate an asset can be found at www.mycommunityrights.org.uk. Notwithstanding, we estimate that over 1,500 community assets have so far been listed.

Community Assets

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assets have been accepted as of community value under the Localism Act 2011.

Stephen Williams: The Government is not obliged to keep a list of assets which have been accepted as being of community value; this is the responsibility of the relevant local authority in England. However we know that over 1,500 assets have been listed including pubs (over 500), museums, parks and green spaces, post offices and village shops and an iconic cold war era control tower at Greenham Common. More information can be found at www.gov.uk/government/news/milestone-reached-as-community-rights-uses-hit-3000.The Welsh Government has not implemented the provisions of the Localism Act 2011 and there are no assets of community value listed in Wales.

Change of Use

Sir Malcolm Rifkind: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what his policy is on the continued exemption of local authorities that have established an objectively-assessed need for more office accommodation through their local plan, and demonstrated a low level of vacancy in the office market, from proposed planning changes to allow offices to be converted to housing; and if he will make a statement.

Brandon Lewis: My Department published a consultation paper on this issue on 31 July. We will publish the Government’s response in due course.

Health

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 12 June 2014 to Question 198864, when he anticipates that his Department will be able to introduce major policies informed by the Government's wellbeing indicators.

Stephen Williams: The Department for Communities and Local Government aims to create great places to live and work, and give more power to local people to shape what happens in their area. As such, many or most of the Department's policies are already concerned with individual or community wellbeing, such as: changing the way services are run, so people get a service suited to them, and are not passed around between different organisations;helping design better local services through the cross-Whitehall Public Service Transformation Network;making sure health and social care services work better together through a £3.8 billion Better Care Fund in 2015-16;turning around the lives of troubled families – cutting crime, getting children back into school and helping people into jobs;recognising, through the National Planning Policy Framework, that the planning system can make an important contribution to the health and wellbeing of communities; andgiving communities a range of new rights with regards to local services and decisions, through the Localism Act. Community rights processes and outcomes can contribute to people’s sense of wellbeing. In its response to the Environmental Audit Committee, published in August 2014, the Government agreed it needs to do more to understand what works to influence and improve wellbeing. This would address the Committee’s finding that personal well-being data “have yet to be developed to a state where they can identify the cause-and-effect links that would be needed for policy-making” (paragraphs 12 and 28). http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201415/cmselect/cmenvaud/639/639.pdf The Department supports efforts to build the evidence base on wellbeing for policy makers and local decision makers in a number of ways, including: contributing £100,000 per year for three years to the What Works Centre for Wellbeing which was launched in October 2014, and shaping the call for research proposals for evidence on ‘Community Wellbeing’ that will be relevant to departmental policies. http://whatworkswellbeing.org/collaborating in a public dialogue, funded by the Cabinet Office and Sciencewise, exploring the relationship between government policies, including the Community Rights, and wellbeing. The report was published on 5 November. http://www.neweconomics.org/talkingwellbeingadding the four questions developed by the Office for National Statistics to measure personal wellbeing to the English Housing Survey. We will release initial finding on wellbeing and housing circumstances in the headline report in February 2015.

Planning Permission: Appeals

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, under what criteria and procedures an hon. Member can seek reference to the Secretary of State of a planning application that has been rejected by a planning authority.

Brandon Lewis: The criteria against which planning appeals will be considered for recovery for determination by the Secretary of State are set out in the Planning Practice Guidance at: http://planningguidance.planningportal.gov.uk/blog/guidance/appeals/planning-appeals-general/. Careful consideration will be given to any request for recovery that is submitted.

Housing: Shropshire

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what information he holds on when Shropshire unitary authority will be in a position to bank an agreed five year land supply.

Kris Hopkins: Shropshire Council submitted its Site Allocations and Management of Development Plan Document to the Secretary of State for examination on 1 August 2014, and its assertion that it has a five year supply of deliverable land will be robustly tested by the Planning Inspector. Getting an up-to-date Local Plan in place, following extensive engagement with local communities and which includes a five year supply of housing sites, is the best way to protect an area from unplanned development whilst meeting local housing needs. Where authorities are in the process of preparing plans, they still need to demonstrate that they have in place a five year supply of deliverable housing sites. Weight can be given to policies in emerging Local Plans to the extent that they reflect policies in the National Planning Policy Framework.

Housing: Carbon Emissions

Sir Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what representations his Department has received on the timing of the introduction of the carbon compliance element of the zero carbon standard for new homes; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Williams: The Government has publicly committed to introducing the zero carbon standard for new homes in 2016. This commitment was informed by a range of representations, most recently to the consultation “Next steps to Zero Carbon – Allowable Solutions” published in August 2013. The consultation and summary of responses to that consultation can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/next-steps-to-zero-carbon-homes-allowable-solutions.

Housing: Carbon Emissions

Sir Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will publish the evidence he has received on the practicality of introducing the carbon compliance element of the zero carbon standard for new homes in 2016; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Williams: The Government will publish an impact assessment to accompany its proposals for the carbon compliance element of the 2016 zero carbon home standard for new homes in due course. This will be based on further research and evidence exploring the practicalities, costs and benefits of the Government’s approach. This will also consider existing evidence, including that from the AIMC4 project in which a consortium of major house builders with the support of Innovate UK has undertaken work with the aim of pioneering the volume production of homes built to level 4 energy standards of the Code for Sustainable Homes.

Enterprise Zones

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the number of businesses that have relocated to enterprise zones since 2012.

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the number of jobs created in Enterprise Zones since 2012.

Penny Mordaunt: Since they started in April 2012 Enterprise Zones have laid down the foundations for their success and report that they have created over 12,530 jobs and attracted 434 new businesses on site.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Libya

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the Home Office on the decision to return 90 Libyan recruits from Bassingbourn; and if he will make a statement.

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the Home Office on the behaviour of Libyan personnel on Bassingbourn base; and if he will make a statement.

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he had with the Home Office on decisions to return Libyan personnel home because of events at Bassingbourn base; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Member for Rayleigh and Wickford (Mr Francois) on 21 November to questions 214127 and 214130.

Palestinians

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions Ministers and officials of his Department have had with their Belgian counterparts on developing a common European response to Israeli demolition of EU-funded development projects in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We have serious concerns about demolitions of Palestinian property by the Israeli authorities. We are currently engaged in discussions with EU partners, including Belgium, on what the EU response should be if EU-funded structures in the Occupied Palestinian Territories are demolished.

Iran

Bob Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of (a) the recent report from the International Atomic Energy Agency that Iran's stockpile of uranium enriched to a fissile purity of five per cent has increased to 8.4 tonnes and (b) whether such an increase would be in compliance with the terms of the Joint Plan of Action.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The latest IAEA Director General's report puts Iran's stockpile of uranium enriched to less than 5% at 8290.3kg. We do not believe anything in the November report indicates a violation by Iran of the JPoA.

Iran

Bob Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of (a) recent reports that Iran has injected uranium hexafluoride into IR-5 centrifuges and (b) whether such activity would be in compliance with the terms of the Joint Plan of Action.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The 7 November 2014 IAEA report into the status of Iran’s nuclear programme states that since September, Iran has intermittently fed natural UF6 into the single IR-5 centrifuge installed at the Pilot Fuel Enrichment Plant at Natanz as a part of its IAEA safeguarded research and development activities. We do not believe that anything in the November report indicates a violation by Iran of the Joint Plan of Action. Our focus remains on reaching a comprehensive agreement by 24 November 2014.

Military Alliances

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the contribution of the Minister for Europe on 6 November 2014, Official Report, column 311WH, in which he stated that the US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement underpins all nuclear defence co-operation between the UK and the US, what information his Department holds on whether there are similar nuclear defence co-operation agreements between other P5 states.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK is not aware of any nuclear defence co-operation agreements amongst other P5 States which are similar to the 1958 Mutual Defence Agreement between the UK and US.

Iran

Mr David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the extent to which Iran is in fulfilment of its obligations under Article 18 of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: In 2013, President Rouhani made a number of comments in support of greater religious freedom in Iran. Unfortunately there has been no change in Iran’s approach over the past year. Religious minority groups in Iran continue to face widespread discrimination. The UK has repeatedly called on the Iranian government to end all persecution of individuals on the basis of their faith, and to guarantee the human rights of all Iranians. The UK most recently raised the issue of freedom of religion and belief during Iran's Universal Periodic Review on 31 October.

Christian Aid

Mr Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to co-operate with other countries to promote the safety of Christian aid workers across the world.

Mr David Lidington: Freedom of religion or belief is a human rights priority for the Government. We take action to promote this right through multilateral bodies such as the UN and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe; and to persuade individual countries to protect it, including by ensuring the safety of Christians and members of all religious groups. Where the aid workers in question are British, they would receive consular support if needed and we would encourage them to check the Foreign and Commonwealth Office travel advice before they travel.

Somalia

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what communications there have been between UK Ministers or officials and (a) the Somali government and (b) Somali officials regarding the Soma Oil and Gas deal; what the nature of those communications was; and if he will make a statement.

James Duddridge: Foreign and Commonwealth officials have discussed the Soma Oil and Gas deal with the Somali authorities on several occasions. During those discussions, UK officials stressed the importance of managing natural resources in a transparent and conflict sensitive way to benefit all Somalis.The British Government is currently funding the World Bank to provide technical assistance to review the legal framework for the petroleum sector and support a Somali-led process leading to a revenue sharing agreement.

India

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will place in the Library the programmes of the Indian Diaspora Champion's visits to India.

Mr Hugo Swire: The Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, my hon. Friend the Member for Witham (Ms Patel) has made three trips to India since her appointment. These visits took place in November 2013, January 2014 and July 2014. She accompanied the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) during his programme to New Delhi and Kolkata, attended the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (Overseas Indian Day) conferences in Punjab and New Delhi, accompanied the Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Mr Osbourne) to Mumbai and New Delhi, and met with a wide range of interlocutors including Prime Minister Modi.My hon. Friend the Member for Witham has also made a number of visits to businesses, community groups and places of worship around the UK, including to Gravesend, Hounslow, Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Southall. During these visits, she was supported by various staff members including members of her Parliamentary team, her Ministerial Private Office and Foreign Office staff, according to the nature of the visit.

India

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, who accompanied the Indian Diaspora Champion in her direct outreach visits in the UK.

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will place in the Library each of the Indian Diaspora Champion's representations to the Government and Indian government on visa service issues.

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will place in the Library each of the Indian Diaspora Champion's representations to the Government and Indian government on the EU ban on importing Indian mangoes.

Mr Hugo Swire: The UK Diaspora Champion, the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, my hon. Friend the Member for Witham (Ms Patel) has made three trips to India since her appointment. These visits took place in November 2013, January 2014 and July 2014. She accompanied the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) during his programme to New Delhi and Kolkata, attended the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (Overseas Indian Day) conferences in Punjab and New Delhi, accompanied the Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Mr Osbourne) to Mumbai and New Delhi, and met with a wide range of interlocutors including Prime Minister Modi. Ms Patel has also made a number of visits to businesses, community groups and places of worship around the UK, including to Gravesend, Hounslow, Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Southall. During these visits, she was supported by various staff members including members of her Parliamentary team, her Ministerial Private Office and Foreign Office staff, according to the nature of the visit. Ms Patel has made representations about matters of concern, including the EU ban on importing mangoes and visa service issues, on behalf of the diaspora community. These representations include writing to the President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, and the Prime Minister in relation to the EU ban on importing mangoes, to ask them to call for the ban to end.

Somalia

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the UN monitoring group's work into corruption in Somalia; and what plans he has for the future of UK government support for the current Somali administration.

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Somali government on honouring its commitment to manage its weapons stockpiles and prevent leaks to Al Shabaab; what consideration his Department has given to the proposal by the Somali Prime Minister for UK assistance for an investigation into Al Shabaab penetration into the Somali government; and if he will make a statement.

James Duddridge: The allegations of corruption contained in the Somalia and Eritrea Monitoring Group report are deeply concerning. We take them seriously and continue to work in partnership with the Somali authorities and other international partners such as the World Bank to improve the overall transparency and accountability of public financial management in Somalia.Reforming Somalia’s public financial management system has been a priority for the Federal Government since 2012, when they inherited extremely weak systems. Since then they have taken various steps, such as the introduction of an automated financial management information system, and also established a “Financial Governance Committee (FGC)” in early 2014 composed of key members of the Federal Government and international financial institutions (IFIs), which we welcomed. The FGC has enabled the IFIs to provide key reform advice at the request of the Somalis on asset management, public sector procurement processes, and public financial management reforms. We continue to monitor the progress being made around delivering against the advice that has been received and will support further public financial management reforms to create transparent and sustainable public systems.

Qatar

Mr Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the efforts made by the Qatari authorities to comply with UN Security Council Resolution 2170 on tackling support for ISIL.

Mr Philip Hammond: The British Government is determined to make rapid progress on implementation of UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 2170, to prevent illicit finance reaching any groups associated with Al Qaeda or ISIL, and on UNSCR 2178 to tackle the flow of foreign fighters. In doing so, the UK is working with like-minded partners. The Qatari authorities share our belief that ISIL needs to be defeated, including through denying it access to funding. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood) discussed these issues with the Qatari Foreign Minister, Dr Khalid Al Attiyah, during his recent visit to Doha on 12 November. He welcomed their efforts to tackle terrorist financing through the introduction of a Charities Commission to prevent abuse of charities, and look to them to work with us on this agenda in the future.

Hamas

Nadhim Zahawi: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of whether Hamas has misused humanitarian aid.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We are not aware of reports that aid intended for humanitarian projects, such as rebuilding homes of Gazans, has been misused by Hamas. The UK has recently invested £0.5million in the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM), specifically a Materials Monitoring Unit, to ensure that any reconstruction materials made available to Gazans to repair their homes are closely tied to an assessment of needs and subjected to rigorous spot checks. This will safeguard against the risk of building materials being diverted towards building tunnels. The GRM was established in November as a temporary and tripartite arrangement between the UN, Palestinian Authority and Government of Israel. Through the mechanism, 700 Gazans have been able to purchase much needed construction material in order to start the rehabilitation of their homes.

Afghanistan

Mr John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure women's rights are discussed at the London Conference on Afghanistan in December 2014; and what objectives he has for that conference relating to the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Ensuring Afghan women and girls’ rights are protected and feature prominently in the London Conference is a key objective for the UK Government. These issues will be incorporated across all of the main themes and events at the conference. This includes an associated event “Ayenda” for civil society and a session in the main plenary to report back on the key messages that have emerged from the Oslo Symposium on Afghanistan Women’s Rights and Empowerment, attended by the Minister of State, my noble Friend the right hon. Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 23 November.

Occupied Territories

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 17 October 2014 to Question 209872, and with reference to the Israeli government's recent announcement of an extra 1,060 settlement units in East Jerusalem, if he will accelerate the timetable of his discussion with EU partners on what further steps can be taken to discourage Israeli settlement activity.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Discussions are already underway in Brussels on what further measures the EU could take to discourage further settlement expansion. As the FAC conclusions of 17 November made clear, the UK and other Member States are deeply concerned by recent developments, are closely monitoring the situation and its broader implications, and remain ready to take further action in order to protect the viability of the two state solution.

North Korea

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Government has been able to choose where to implement its projects within North Korea; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Hugo Swire: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office runs a range of programmes in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) which support our country objectives. When we discuss project proposals with the DPRK authorities, we identify locations in the DPRK where we assess our project work is likely to have the most impact. However, it is not possible to conduct projects in the DPRK without the agreement and cooperation of the DPRK authorities. We retain the right to reject locations and to withdraw funding if we are not satisfied.

Cyprus

Mr David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he has taken in response to Turkey's intrusion into the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Republic of Cyprus in October 2014; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Lidington: Our Ambassador in Ankara has conveyed UK concerns to Turkey about plans to conduct commercial seismic surveys in the Republic of Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone. I raised the need to resolve the situation with my Turkish counterpart on 17 November, and we have also had discussions with the Cypriots, UN, EU, and other partners. This ongoing dispute puts at risk UN-facilitated efforts to reach a comprehensive settlement. We and our partners will continue to urge the parties to reduce tensions, and we strongly support the resumption of settlement talks.

Sudan

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to address the persecution of Christians in the Sudan region.

James Duddridge: We raise our concerns about freedom of religion with the Government of Sudan as part of our regular engagement on human rights issues. Most recently our Embassy in Khartoum raised this issue with the External Affairs Secretariat of the National Congress Party (the ruling political party) and Sudan’s National Human Rights Commission. Additionally, our Embassy regularly engages with Christian groups based in Sudan, and where possible, follows up on specific cases. We also highlight our concerns in the Department’s ‘Human Rights Country of Concern’ quarterly update for Sudan.

Conflict Resolution: Females

Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he plans to publish the implementation plan for the UK National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security.

James Duddridge: Although we have committed to develop and publish the UK’s first Implementation Plan by the end of 2014, we in fact hope to publish the document before then.The Implementation Plan will include indicators and baseline data and will build on the National Action Plan (NAP) on Women, Peace and Security. It will be used to assess the impact of UK efforts on Women, Peace and Security throughout the life of this NAP. The Implementation Plan will focus on Afghanistan, Burma, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Libya, Somalia and Syria; all countries facing very different situations but where more can be done to protect women; to involve them in building long-term security; and where the UK can make a real difference.

Iran

Guto Bebb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the prospect of Iran neutralising its stockpile of 20 per cent enriched uranium.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The IAEA Director General in his November report on the status of Iran’s nuclear programme reconfirmed that all of Iran’s 20% enriched uranium stockpile has been down-blended to less than 5%, or converted to oxide, in keeping with Iran’s commitments under the Joint Plan of Action.

Iran

Guto Bebb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received about Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's nine point plan for the destruction of Israel.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We strongly condemn any suggestions from Iran’s leaders that Israel should be eliminated. We similarly strongly condemn any politically or racially motivated attempts to deny or question the Holocaust, and all anti-Semitic language.

West Africa: Ebola

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate he has made of how much his Department has spent on specific steps to tackle the Ebola outbreak in West Africa to date.

James Duddridge: The FCO estimates spend of approximately £106,000 since the beginning of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. This figure forms a part of the £230 million committed by the UK Government to tackle Ebola, which includes support for 700 Ebola treatment beds in Sierra Leone, tripling current capacity. A significant area of FCO expenditure has been providing additional resilience to our Missions in the affected countries. This has helped ensure the UK is at the forefront of the international effort to tackle Ebola. A further element of spend was the UK hosted London Conference on Defeating Ebola on 2 October. The conference brought together more than 20 governments, a dozen charities and NGOs, the UN, World Bank, health experts and the private sector to pledge funds, equipment and health workers. The conference secured new pledges for Sierra Leone of over £100m and hundreds of staff for the Ebola response.

Tanzania

Mr Angus Brendan MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to Tanzania and Dubai to prevent the expropriation of traditional Masai land in Tanzania for a big game hunting reserve for the Royal Family of Dubai.

James Duddridge: We are aware of media reports about expropriation of Maasai land in Tanzania for a hunting reserve for the Royal Family of Dubai. In a press conference on 20 November, the Tanzanian Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism refuted the claims as inaccurate. The British High Commission and Department for International Development in Tanzania regularly raise land issues with the Ministry of Lands, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism and will continue to do so.

Iran

Mr Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent progress he has made on reopening HM Embassy in Tehran.

Mr Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when HM Embassy in Tehran will be reopened.

Mr Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what issues remain to be addressed before the Government can reopen HM Embassy in Tehran.

Mr Philip Hammond: The Government remains committed to reopening the British Embassy in Tehran once we have resolved the outstanding steps required to bring the Embassy back to a functional level and made progress on arrangements for re-establishing a visa service in Tehran. We are in ongoing discussion with the Iranian government to identify solutions on both issues.

Northern Ireland Office

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if she will make additional funds available to allow the Northern Ireland Executive to extend the Warm Home Discount Scheme to Northern Ireland; what recent steps she has taken to encourage the setting up of the Warm Home Discount Scheme in Northern Ireland; and if she will make a statement.

Mrs Theresa Villiers: Decisions on tackling fuel poverty are devolved matters and this is why Northern Ireland has its own fuel poverty strategy separate to Great Britain. It therefore follows that any associated funding issues that would arise in introducing the Warm Home Discount Scheme to Northern Ireland would be for the Northern Ireland Executive to fund from its Block Grant.I am aware that from time to time the Social Development Committee has considered the question of introducing a Warm Homes Discount Scheme in Northern Ireland but as these are matters that are the responsibility of the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment, the hon Member might wish to take this matter up with the DETI Minister directly.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Overseas Trade: North Korea

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the number of UK businesses (a) operating in and (b) contracting with the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea.

Matthew Hancock: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills does not hold any information on the number of businesses operating in, or contracting with, the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea.

Science: Research

Mr William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much has been spent on science and research and development through local enterprise partnerships in each region of England; and how such spending compares with equivalent spending in (a) the EU and (b) the G20.

Greg Clark: Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) and their local partners have strategic direction over £20 billion domestic and EU funding between now and 2020/21. Strengthening research, technological development and innovation is a key objective of the European funds, and LEPs can advance growth-oriented science and research projects for investment through the Local Growth Fund. The Government does not at this early stage of these programmes hold data on the amount spent by LEPs on science, research and development, or on international comparators.   Additionally we recently agreed a City Deal with Glasgow and the Clyde Valley that will see UK Government make significant investments in science and innovation. This includes £16 million to support a Stratified Medicine: Imaging Centre of Excellence at the new South Glasgow Hospital site, £1.2 million towards the establishment of MediCity Scotland, and £1.67 million towards a centre for Business Incubation and Development.

Space Technology

Bob Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if the Government will support the creation of a UK space agency.

Greg Clark: The UK Space Agency was created in April 2011 as one of the recommendations of the 2010 Space Innovation and Growth Strategy. The Agency's positive impact on the space sector's growth was welcomed by the House of Commons' Select Committee on Science and Technology in 2013.

Business: Stafford

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many businesses the Manufacturing Advisory Service has assisted in Stafford constituency since May 2010.

Matthew Hancock: The Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) has assisted 22 companies in Stafford since 1 January 2012 when the new national MAS service was launched. Businesses have forecast this could help create 65 jobs and over £2.75 million Gross Value Added. Figures are not available for the regional MAS delivered by the former Regional Development Agencies prior to January 2012.

New Businesses: Windsor

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps the Government has taken to support disabled people in Windsor constituency who want to start their own business.

Matthew Hancock: We are continuing to work hard to provide the right support to make life easier for everyone who wants to start their own business, including disabled people. www.greatbusiness.gov.uk provides support and advice for anyone trying to grow a business as well as for entrepreneurs starting out. This includes a 'Business Finance and Support Finder' that can provide a customised source of government backed support and finance for business. In addition to on-line support, the Business Support Helpline (0300 456 3565) is available to provide a quick response on queries about starting a business, or a personalised and in-depth advice service for more complex needs. For those looking for start-up finance and advice there are Start-Up Loans: 10 loans worth a total of £47,500 have been drawn down in Windsor to date. Finally, the New Enterprise Allowance helps people claiming certain out of work benefits to start up their own business. As of June 2014, 10,040 disabled people (from a total of 53,350) had started a new business with the help of the NEA.

Apprentices

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many new apprenticeships have begun in (a) England and (b) Brighton, Kemptown constituency in the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Boles: Information on apprenticeship starts by geography is published in a supplementary table to a Statistical First Release (SFR):https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/364255/apprenticeships-starts-by-geography-learner-demographics-and-sector-subject-area.xls

Coke: Barnsley

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if the Government will take steps to ensure a future for the Monckton coke plant in Barnsley.

Matthew Hancock: Holding answer received on 20 November 2014



The proposed closure of Monckton coke plant, is a commercial decision for the company taken against a backdrop of challenging conditions in international coke markets. I realise this is a difficult time for the employees concerned, their families and the communities in which they live.   With regard to the purchasing of product from Monckton, the Department of Energy and Climate Change, who have responsibility for the former British Coal Concessionary Fuel Scheme, will continue to encourage their contractors to purchase product from Monckton as long as supplies of an acceptable quality are available

Coke

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what plans the Government has to support the coke industry in the UK.

Matthew Hancock: Holding answer received on 20 November 2014



UK coke companies can access help and advice to grow their business through ‘GREAT” (www.greatbusiness.gov.uk or www.gov.uk): eligible businesses can gain support in areas such as running, funding, staffing and expanding a business. The Government funded Manufacturing Advisory Service provides practical support on all aspects of manufacturing, including direct access to manufacturing experts with a proven track record (www.mymas.org/services). There is also support available from UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) for those companies wishing to grow through international trade.   The Advanced Manufacturing Supply Chain Initiative (AMSCI) provides support for the anchoring and growth of manufacturing supply chains in the UK. A new £100 million round of AMSCI is open until 31 December 2014.

Prisons: Education

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what proportion of (a) male and (b) female offenders have (i) engaged and (ii) declined to engage in education in custody in the latest period for which figures are available.

Nick Boles: Information on volumes in offender learning by gender is published in a supplementary table to a Statistical First Release (SFR): https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/354673/feandskills-OLASS-participation-and-achievement.xls.xls Offender learning is recorded in the Individualised Learner Record (ILR). The ILR does not capture information on those who have declined education. SFR data is not comparable with published prison population data in a way that would allow calculation of the proportion of offenders who engage in learning.

Business: Complaints

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many complaints his Department has received about (a) UK Acorn Finance, (b) Burges Salmon Solicitors and (c) Commercial First from (i) hon. Members and (ii) members of the public.

Jo Swinson: It is not Departmental policy to comment on the affairs of companies. Any complaints made to the Insolvency Service will concern the use of the Secretary of State’s powers of investigation under the Companies Acts and such investigations are confidential.

Sanctions: Somalia

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent discussions his Department has had with (a) Salama Fikira, (b) Solace Global Maritime and (c) representatives of Soma Oil and Gas on the UN arms embargo on Somalia.

Matthew Hancock: There have been recent discussions between officials and Solace Global Maritime about the scope of the UN arms embargo. There have been no such discussions with Salama Fikira or Soma Oil and Gas.

ICT

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he has taken to encourage growth of the big data industry in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The Government has identified big data as one of the ‘eight great technologies’ that will propel the UK’s future economic growth. Since 2010, the Government has made a series of strategic investments to support the growth of the big data industry in the UK. These include: - a £159 million investment programme in the UK’s high performance computing and networks infrastructure announced in 2011. - £189 million investment announced in 2012 to support a programme of big data and energy-efficient computing projects across the UK co-ordinated by the Economic and Social Research Council. - £10.7 million announced in December 2013 to create a new Higgs Centre for Innovation at the UK Astronomy Technology Centre in Edinburgh that will focus on big data and space technologies. - £42 million announced in March 2014 to establish a world-leading Alan Turing Institute, which will be established in 2015 to research the analysis and application of big data. - Investment of over £50 million to establish the Digital Catapult, based in London, which will bring researchers and business together to accelerate new innovative products to market. On 31 October 2013, the Government also published ‘Seizing the Data Opportunity: a strategy for UK data capability’, which examines the UK’s capability to make best use of all data including big data, public sector held data, research data, and data collected by companies. The strategy was developed in partnership with industry to place the UK at the forefront of extracting knowledge and value from data. Since the publication of the strategy, the Government has introduced new legislation on copyright exceptions in June 2014 to enable text and data-mining for non-commercial purpose, and has developed new UK Trade & Industry marketing material to attract increased overseas investment and custom to the UK data centre market.

Children: Employment

Chris Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what plans he has to review the adequacy of regulations protecting employees who report concerns about child exploitation; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Swinson: This Government is committed to ensuring there is a strong legislative framework to encourage workers to speak up about wrongdoing, risk or malpractice without fear of reprisal. The whistleblowing legislation ensures there is a legal remedy for those that do suffer a detriment in their employment as a result of whistleblowing. We recognise there is further to go and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is currently implementing further legislative and non-legislative changes to improve the understanding and application of the law.

Business

Iain McKenzie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what additional support he plans to give small and medium-sized businesses in the UK.

Matthew Hancock: Holding answer received on 21 November 2014



Small businesses are vital to our economy and our small business owners have driven this economic recovery. The Inverclyde constituency has benefitted from a number of support schemes. The Business Bank’s Start-Up Loan programme has already provided 16 loans, with a value of £55,000, to people starting a business in Inverclyde. And since May 2010, the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme has supported loans in the area with a total value of £970,000.   We are committed to making Britain the best place in the world to start and grow a business, and are doing this in a number of ways:   £10 billion of financing will be unlocked for smaller business over the next 5 years by our British Business Bank;Government grants of up to £3,000 for better internet connectivity are available to small businesses;The Business Support Helpline is available to provide bespoke information and advice;Cuts to corporation tax from 28% to 21%; and£2,000 cut from the National Insurance bills of small firms from the new Employment Allowance.

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether any (a) external contractors and (b) consultancy companies engaged by his Department have charged more than the initial price agreed for their services since May 2010.

Jo Swinson: Since August 2012 the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has benefitted from having central records of contracts let by the Department. However, the operational management of each contract continues to rest with the respective project SRO (Senior Responsible Owner) or team, and there may often be valid reasons for any subsequent contract changes. The Department is reviewing its Commercial Strategy and expects to increase management information in this area soon but presently lacks the capacity to marry contracts let with actual payments made, and to do so would involve disproportionate cost.

Low Pay: Scotland

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what representations he has received from the Scottish Government on the living wage; and if he will place in the Library any correspondence on this issue between his Department and the Scottish Government.

Jo Swinson: We have received no representations from the Scottish Government regarding the living wage.

Exports: Qatar

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will list all open individual export licences with Qatar in force in the last 12 months.

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will list all open individual export licences with Kuwait in force in the last 12 months.

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will list all standard individual export licences with Qatar in force in the last 12 months.

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will list all standard individual export licences with Kuwait in force in the last 12 months.

Matthew Hancock: Information on arms exports is published in the Annual and Quarterly Reports on Strategic Export Controls. These reports contain detailed information on export licences issued, refused or revoked, by destination, including the overall value, type (e.g. Military, Other) and a summary of the items covered by these licences. They are available to view at:   https://www.exportcontroldb.bis.gov.uk/sdb/fox/sdb/SDBHOME.   Bespoke reports can also be produced on specific countries and goods types, but you will need to register to download the data.   Currently the database includes information up to 30 June 2014. Information covering 1 July to 30 September 2014 will be published in January 2015 and information covering 1 October to 312014 will be December will be published in April 2015.

Basic Skills: Young People

Sir Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to help young people develop pre-employment and basic skills to help them into work; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Boles: The Government supports a range of opportunities for young people of different abilities to help them develop pre-employment and basic skills to help them in to work.   The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills provides full funding for young people aged 19 to 23 to take their first full Level 2 and 3 qualifications and to progress towards those levels, giving them the opportunity to gain the skills required to obtain and progress in work. For young people who already have a full Level 2 or Level 3 qualification, the Department provides a subsidy towards further training at that level.   We also provide full funding, irrespective of prior qualification level, for training up to Level 4 for unemployed young people aged 19 to 23 in receipt of Jobseeker’s Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance in the Work Related Activity Group or Universal Credit, who have had a skills need identified and where training will help them get into work.   As part of the Youth Contract, unemployed 18-24 year olds can access a careers advice session within the first 3 months of becoming unemployed. Between its launch in April 2012 and end September 2014 the National Careers Service has delivered careers advice to almost 450,000 unemployed 18-24 year olds.   Being competent in English and maths can make a real difference to a young person’s employment outcomes and their general well-being. That is why English and maths are at the heart of all our major programmes, and full funding of tuition costs is available for provision up to GCSE level in English and maths for those who do not yet have those qualifications.   In August 2013, we launched traineeships, which are available for 16-24 year olds. Traineeships is an education and training programme with work experience, focused on giving young people the skills and experience they need to be able to compete for apprenticeships or other jobs. From 2014/15 young people undertaking a traineeship, as well as all intermediate apprentices, will be required to work towards achieving a Level 2 in English and maths unless they already have Level 2 qualifications in these subjects. Provisional data for 2013/14 shows that traineeships are off to a good start with 10,500 taking up traineeship opportunities.

Flexible Working

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many and what proportion of (a) women and (b) men have made a statutory application to request flexible working in his Department; and how many of those applications have been granted to date.

Jo Swinson: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills operates a flexible working policy that enables employees to work flexibly wherever possible and where this meets the needs of the business. We have been offering our employees the opportunity to work flexibly since April 2012.Decisions on how this operates for an individual employee, and consideration of statutory applications to request flexible working, are managed by line managers at a local level.We do not hold central records on this and there would therefore be a disproportionate cost incurred in collecting this information from our line managers.

Regional Growth Fund

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much has been (a) committed to and (b) spent in each parliamentary constituency in England through the Regional Growth Fund in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012, (iv) 2013 and (v) 2014 to date.

Greg Clark: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

EU External Trade: USA

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts in other EU member states on the proposed disputes procedure in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.

Matthew Hancock: The Government has ongoing discussions on investor-state dispute settlement provisions in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) with EU member states, the European Commission, MEPs and other stakeholders. We want investment protection provisions that guarantee the right of governments to legislate in the public interest while ensuring access to justice for investors who are discriminated against or treated unfairly.

Department for International Development

Palestinians

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assistance her Department plans to give to the removal of unexploded remnants of war in civilian areas in Gaza.

Mr Desmond Swayne: DFID is supporting United Nations Mine Action Service with £450,000 of funding.

Palestinians

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what help her Department plans to give to children in Gaza requiring specialised psychosocial support as a result of recent conflict.

Mr Desmond Swayne: DFID is funding mental health and psychosocial support across the Gaza strip, including psychosocial care for 3000 children and 1500 mothers, psychological training for 120 child carers, and psychotherapy for 900 of the most traumatised children. We are also one of the largest donors to the UN Relief and Works Agency, which is providing psychosocial support and activities for children through its extensive network of schools.

Palestinians

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The UN estimates that around 30,000 internally displaced people are still sheltering in UNRWA schools and that more than 100,000 people have been made permanently homeless. As winter approaches, the needs of these displaced people will become more acute. A health assessment led by the World Health Organisation indicates ongoing critical shortages of essential medicines and medical equipment. The UN also reports that food insecurity – already high in the Gaza Strip at 57 per cent– is likely to have significantly increased, and that significant constraints still impair the delivery of water and sanitation services.

Palestinians

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assistance she plans to provide for the reconstruction or repair of schools destroyed or badly damaged in the Gaza conflict.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The UK has contributed £6 million in funding to the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA)’s Gaza Flash Appeal, which was launched in order to provide emergency assistance for displaced people and, upon cessation of hostilities, to start early recovery activities including shelter and installation repair. Our £20 million pledge at the Cairo conference included further support to UNRWA to support reconstruction. The UK has also provided £500,000 to support the temporary Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism to allow construction materials into Gaza.

Sri Lanka

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans the Government has for aid in Sri Lanka in 2015-16.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The UK does not have a bilateral DFID aid programme in Sri Lanka. Some programmes working across a number of countries on specific themes will continue to benefit Sri Lanka on nutrition, mine clearance, and improving state-society relations in security and justice provision.

Occupied Territories

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions her Department has had with its Belgian equivalents on developing a common European response to Israeli demolition of EU-funded development projects in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Mr Desmond Swayne: No such discussions have taken place. The UK remains deeply concerned about demolitions of Palestinian property, which cause unnecessary suffering to ordinary Palestinians, are harmful to the peace process and, in all but the most limited circumstances, are contrary to international humanitarian law. The UK and the EU are currently engaging with the Israeli authorities in order to accelerate the approval of UK-funded masterplans for Palestinian communities in Area C of the West Bank. These plans provide the basis for sustainable development in Area C and reduce the risk of demolition.

Somalia

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make it her policy to adopt the UN monitoring group on Somalia's calls for a moratorium on the new oil and gas deals until appropriate constitutional, legislative, fiscal and regulatory provisions had been clarified and agreed to by the federal government and its regional authorities; and if her Department will take steps to discourage new oil deals in Somalia.

Mr Desmond Swayne: We have stressed to the Somalia authorities the need to agree resource and revenue sharing arrangements with the emerging federal states in Somalia, and put in place appropriate legal and regulatory frameworks for the management of Somalia’s natural resources. We are funding the World Bank to support a Somali-led process leading to agreement on revenue sharing, and to providing technical assistance to review the legal and regulatory framework.

Somalia

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the UK's position will be on the future of its donor commitments and requirements at the conference on Somalia taking place in Copenhagen on 19 and 20 November 2014.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The Copenhagen conference on 19-20 November took stock of progress in the first year of implementation of the Somali New Deal Compact. We called for political stability, continued progress on building peace and stability and the avoidance of further conflict. We also called for greater transparency and accountability in public financial management and the awarding of concessions, and a focus on resource sharing agreements as a key building block of the state formation process required to establish a stable Somali federation. We also emphasised the importance of ensuring the full inclusion and empowerment of women and girls in Somalia and improvements in access to justice. These requirements will provide the framework for our aid relationship with Somalia as we move forwards into the second year of the implementation of the compact.

Somalia

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will place in the Library a copy of the needs assessment report on Government support for the Somalia extractives sector; what steps the Government is taking as a result of that report; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Desmond Swayne: A copy of the needs assessment report on the Somalia extractives sector has been placed in the Library. In response to the report, and following discussions with the Federal Government of Somalia, we are funding the World Bank to support a Somali-led process to reach agreements on revenue sharing. The project will also provide technical assistance to review the legal and regulatory framework.

Public Private Partnerships

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what financial or other support is provided by her Department to the Public Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility; and if she will make a statement.

Justine Greening: DFID does not currently provide any funding to the Public Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility.

India

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what representations she has made to the Indian government on the death and injury of workers in building collapses in India.

Mr Desmond Swayne: FCO make representations to the Indian Government on various issues. DFID has limited involvement in the construction sector in India. Through our Affordable Housing Programme, operating in three states, we ensure high quality construction and adherence to safety standards in every housing project.

Occupied Territories

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many development projects funded by the UK Government in East Jerusalem or the West Bank have been demolished or damaged by the Israeli authorities in each of the last five years; and what the replacement value was of each such project.

Mr Desmond Swayne: No UK-funded development projects have been demolished or damaged by the Israeli authorities in East Jerusalem or the West Bank in the last five years.

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether any (a) external contractors and (b) consultancy companies engaged by her Department have charged more than the initial price agreed for their services since May 2010.

Justine Greening: DFID's standard terms of contract with suppliers provide the ability to vary or extend funding.

Ebola

Mr Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much her Department (a) has spent and (b) plans to spend on Ebola in (i) Sierra Leone, (ii) the UK and (iii) elsewhere in this financial year.

Justine Greening: Tackling the Ebola outbreak in West Africa is a priority for my department. As of 21 November, we have committed £230 million.   The vast majority of our commitment will be spent tackling this crisis in Sierra Leone, where the UK is leading the international response. A small proportion of funds have been disbursed to support the work of NGOs in Liberia, where the US is leading the international response to Ebola.   We will work with the international community to ensure that the financial resources needed to contain, combat and ultimately defeat this deadly disease are made available, in the right areas and at the right time.

Department for Education

Further Education: Transport

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will review the statutory guidance for local authorities on post-16 transport to education and training in order to take account of the increase in the education participation age to 18.

Mr David Laws: The post-16 transport guidance for local authorities was reviewed following the introduction of legislation to raise the participation age in 2013 and an updated version was published in February this year.   The statutory responsibility for transport to education and training for 16- to 19-year-olds continues to rest with local authorities, enabling them to make decisions which best match local needs and circumstances. Local authorities are expected to make reasonable decisions based on the needs of their population, the local transport infrastructure, and the resources they have available. The Government has no plans at present to extend the statutory requirement beyond this.   Most 16- to 19-year-olds have access to a discount or concession on local travel, from their local transport provider, their local authority, or from their education or training provider. The £180 million Bursary Fund is also available to support young people with the costs associated with attending education or training, and transport is the biggest single area of expenditure for which this fund is used.

Academies

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which (a) university technical colleges and (b) free schools for 16 to 19-year-olds she expects to open in September 2015.

Mr Edward Timpson: The Department for Education publishes on our website the names of all free schools (including for 16- to 19-year-olds), university technical colleges (UTCs) and studio schools in the pre-opening phase currently planned to open in 2015 and beyond. Free schools (searchable by phase) currently planned to open in 2015 and beyond can be found here: www.gov.uk/government/publications/free-schools-open-schools-and-successful-applications and the names of UTCs in pre-opening can be found here:www.gov.uk/government/publications/utcs-and-studio-schools-open-schools-and-applications-received We do not publish opening dates because these are kept under review throughout the pre-opening phase and could change.

Children in Care: Drugs

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children in residential care are prescribed psychiatric drugs.

Mr Edward Timpson: Information on how many children in residential care are prescribed psychiatric drugs is not collected centrally. Prescriptions data that are collected by the NHS Business Services Authority’s Prescription Services do not include the age or home location of a patient.

Academies: Stafford

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the (a) take-up of places in and (b) performance of academies in Stafford constituency.

Mr Edward Timpson: Stafford constituency has four open academies:1) John Wheeldon Primary School (opened 1 September 2014, sponsored by Staffordshire University)2) Rowley Park Primary Academy (opened 1 August 2014, sponsored by Victoria Park Primary Academy)3) The Weston Road Academy (converted to academy status in October 2011)4) The Rural Enterprise Academy (opened August 2012 as a free school, sponsored by South Staffordshire College, Veolia and the National Farmers Union).Both John Wheeldon and Rowley Park are at or near capacity. The Rural Enterprise Academy has been open since 2012 and has a phased intake admitting up to 60 pupils in each year. There are currently under 100 pupils on roll. The Weston Road Academy is almost 80% full.We make regular assessments of all academies to monitor performance.John Wheeldon and Rowley Park converted in September 2014 and it is too early to say what impact academy conversion has had. Rural Enterprise Academy was rated Good by Ofsted in March this year. The Weston Road Academy was rated Good by Ofsted in October 2013 and overall performance is above the national floor targets.

Pupils: Per Capita Costs

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average amount spent per pupil in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools is in each parliamentary constituency.

Mr David Laws: The requested information is shown in the tables attached to this reply. 



214626_Academies_funding_per_pupil2012-2013
(Excel SpreadSheet, 35.96 KB)




214626Maintainedschools_funding_per_pupil2012-2013
(Excel SpreadSheet, 31.96 KB)

Schools: Yorkshire and Humberside

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which organisations in Yorkshire and Humberside are currently not subject to any temporary or permanent withdrawal of approval for the sponsorship of new or additional schools by the (a) Secretary of State and (b) Regional Schools Commissioner to be academy sponsors for existing (i) primary schools, (ii) secondary schools, (iii) post-16 schools and colleges and (iv) three to 18 schools.

Mr Edward Timpson: Holding answer received on 20 November 2014



In the accompanying table there are 76 approved sponsors who are currently sponsoring at least one school in Yorkshire and the Humber Government Office Region. Approval is not broken down by the age-range of schools that they are approved to sponsor. The Department for Education continuously assesses the capacity and performance of sponsors to ensure they are in the best position to support the improvement of their schools, and sponsors are matched to schools on a case by case basis.Approved sponsors with Schools in Yorkshire and Humber Government Office RegionAbbey Academies TrustAcademies Enterprise Trust (AET)Airedale AcademyArmthorpe Shaw Wood AcademyAston Community Education Trust (ACET)Beckfoot SchoolBishop Konstant Catholic Academy TrustBradfield SchoolBradford College Education TrustBradford Diocesan Academies TrustBransholme and District Academies Partnership (Umbrella Trust)Brighter Futures Academy TrustCastleford AcademyCfBT Education TrustCraven Education Academy TrustDavid Ross Education Trust (DRET)Diocese of Bradford, Leeds and RiponDiocese of HallamDiocese of Sheffield TrustDiocese of Wakefield (Wakefield Diocese Academy Trust)Diocese of York Educational TrustDixons Academy TrustE-ACTEbor Academy TrustEmmanuel Schools FoundationEnquire Learning TrustFocus-TrustGreetland Primary AcademyHartley Brook and Hatfield TrustHealing Science Academy LtdHinde House 3-16 School (Academy Trust)Hull Collaborative Academy TrustHull CollegeInterserve Investments LtdIsle Education TrustLeaf TrustLeeds City CollegeLincoln Anglican Academy TrustMercia Learning TrustMoor End Academies TrustNavigate Academies TrustNorth Carr Collaborative Academies TrustNorthern Education TrustNorthern Star Educational TrustNottingham Roman Catholic Diocesan Education Service (NRCDES)Oasis Community LearningOrmiston Academies TrustOssett AcademyOutwood Grange Academies TrustPioneer Academies Co-operative TrustPontefract Academies TrustRawmarsh Ashwood Primary SchoolSandhill Primary AcademySchool Partnership Trust Academies (SPTA)South Hunsley School and Sixth Form CollegeSt Cuthbert's Roman Catholic Multi Academy TrustSt Mary’s Academy TrustSteel City Schools PartnershipTapton School Academy trustThe Central Learning Partnership TrustThe Co-operative GroupThe GORSE Academies TrustThe Hessle Academy Community TrustThe Inspire TrustThe Mirfield Free Grammar & Sixth FormThe Rodillian AcademyTollbar Academy TrustUnited LearningUniversity of BradfordUniversity of HullU-xploreWakefield City Academies TrustWellspring Academy TrustWhite Woods Primary Academy TrustWhitehill Community AcademyWickersley School and Sports College

Children in Care

Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether virtual schools for children in care can apply for her Department's summer school funding.

Mr David Laws: The pupil premium: summer schools programme is open to the following type of schools: Maintained schools including special schools;Academies including special schools;Free schools including special schools;Non-maintained special schools; andIndependent special schools. Virtual schools, which are a way of local authorities tracking the educational progress of the children they look after as if they attended a single school, are not eligible to apply for summer school funding. Looked-after children can benefit from summer school funding through the school they will attend in Year 7. The exact make-up of the summer school is decided by individual headteachers. They can, for example, tailor aspects of their summer school programme to meet the specific needs of their looked-after children.  The purpose of the summer schools programme is to support disadvantaged pupils through the potentially difficult institutional transition to secondary school; this specific transitional issue does not arise in a virtual school. Support at this crucial stage is best provided by the school where the pupil is expected to attend in Year 7.

Home Education

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many officials, civil servants or contracted workers in her Department are working on homeschooling policy and safeguarding issues relating to homeschooling.

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which division within her Department has responsibility for homeschooling.

Mr Nick Gibb: Home education policy matters are dealt with by the Independent Education and School Governance Division (IESGD), although other divisions are involved when issues such as funding, safeguarding, examination results or pupil registration arise in relation to home educated children.   Four of the Department for Education’s officials have specific responsibility within IESGD for home education policy, as one part of their overall duties.

Education: Children

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the number of children missing from education in England and Wales.

Mr Nick Gibb: The Department for Education does not collect data relating to children missing from education.   Under section 436A of the Education Act 1996 local authorities in England have a legal duty to identify, as far as it is possible to do so, children in their area of compulsory school age who are not registered pupils at a school and are not receiving suitable education otherwise than at school. The Department’s statutory guidance[1] says that local authorities should have robust procedures and policies in place to enable them to do so.   The Welsh Government is responsible for polices and legislation regarding children missing from education in Wales.  [1] www.gov.uk/government/publications/children-missing-education

Private Education

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the number of tuition centres offering fee-paying education in excess of 19 hours a week for an individual child.

Mr Nick Gibb: The Department for Education does not hold information in the form requested.   Any tuition centre offering education in excess of 19 hours per week would need to be registered as an independent school if there were five or more pupils of compulsory school age. When the Department becomes aware that a tuition centre may meet the criteria for registration, it commissions a visit by Ofsted to find out if a school is being conducted. If the criteria for registration as an independent school are met, it will be registered provided it also meets all the relevant standards; if not it must close down or the proprietor will be prosecuted.

Home Education

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of safeguarding risks to children who are homeschooled.

Mr Nick Gibb: Local authorities’ safeguarding powers are available for use for children receiving home education on the same basis as children attending school. The Department for Education’s view has been that those safeguarding powers are adequate to deal with home educated children, and recent serious case reviews have not shown otherwise.  As stated in the answer I gave to the hon. Member on 20 October (210289), however, safeguarding is an aspect of home education included in the discussions we have started with representative bodies this autumn and it is a key theme emerging in those discussions.

University Technical Colleges

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many university technical colleges have (a) closed and (b) changed their intake from 14 to 18 year olds to 16 to 18 year olds since 2010.

Mr Edward Timpson: To date, no university technical college (UTC) has closed. It has already been announced that Hackney UTC will close in August 2015. No UTCs have changed their intake from 14- to 18–year-olds to 16- to 18-year-olds since 2010.

Education: Standards

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps her Department has taken to reduce variations in standards of education.

Mr David Laws: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Belfast North on 21 October 2014 (210718).

Science: Primary Education

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps her Department has taken to encourage initiatives to promote science, engineering and maths in local primary schools.

Mr Nick Gibb: We are promoting science, engineering and mathematics in primary schools in a number of ways. From September this year, we introduced a new primary curriculum which aims to align England with those countries that have the highest-performing school systems in the world. Our new primary curriculum sets out the essential knowledge pupils need to progress. There is a greater emphasis on the acquisition of scientific knowledge, an increased focus on practical work, and more emphasis on written methods of calculation. To ensure the focus on written and mental arithmetic, we have also removed the use of calculators from the end of Key Stage 2 tests.  The Department funds several programmes to support the teaching of science and maths at primary including funding 50 local Science Learning Partnerships that deliver professional development to science teachers. In mathematics, we have established a network of 32 new Maths Hubs across England backed by £11 million of funding. These centres of excellence will implement the Shanghai-style mastery approach to mathematics. Central to this is a Shanghai teacher exchange programme. The hubs will also lead a project to trial the use of textbooks at the core of a mastery teaching approach in selected primary schools.

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether any (a) external contractors and (b) consultancy companies engaged by her Department have charged more than the initial price agreed for their services since May 2010.

Mr Nick Gibb: The Department for Education does not collect this information in the requested format and it could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

GCE A-level

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department has taken to ensure consistency between marking and remarking of A levels; and what recourse is available to students who have missed out on university places due to variable grade marking.

Mr Nick Gibb: This is a matter for Ofqual, the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation. I have asked its Chief Regulator, Glenys Stacey, to write directly to the hon. Member. A copy of her reply will be placed in the House Library.

Commercialisation and Sexualisation of Childhood Review

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the cost to her Department was of the Bailey Review on the commercialisation and sexualisation of childhood.

Mr Edward Timpson: The review had a budget of £100,000, which included the costs of the reviewer, the costs of the research he commissioned, the consultations he undertook and the publishing costs.

Flexible Working

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of (a) women and (b) men have made a statutory application to request flexible working in her Department; and how many of those applications have been granted to date.

Mr Nick Gibb: The Department for Education does not hold information centrally on the proportion of (a) women and (b) men that have made a statutory application to request flexible working, or how many of those applications have been granted to date. All employees are entitled to apply for flexible working. Such requests are agreed locally with line managers.

Home Education

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what representations she has received from (a) education, (b) religious and (c) children's charities or groups on children who are homeschooled.

Mr Nick Gibb: There have been no recent representations of this nature.

Grant Maintained Schools

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what representations she has received on the payment of maintained school business managers on the senior leadership pay spine; and if she will make a statement.

Mr David Laws: The National Association of Head Teachers wrote to the Secretary of State for Education on 22 October 2014 about paying school business managers on the leadership pay range. In her reply the Secretary of State explained that the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD) only provides for headteachers, deputy headteachers and assistant headteachers to be paid on the leadership pay range. School business managers do not fall within the definition of ‘school teacher’ in the STPCD and so are not subject to its provisions. Schools that are the direct employers of school business managers have the flexibility to decide for themselves the appropriate rates of pay for such staff.

Ministry of Justice

Prisons: Training

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of (a) male and (b) female offenders have been (i) engaged in and (ii) declined to engage in work programmes in custody in the latest period for which figures are available.

Andrew Selous: Work in prisons is a key priority, to ensure prisoners are engaged in real work whilst they are in custody. It also gives them the opportunity to learn skills and develop their work ethic which can increase their chances of finding employment on release, a key element to reducing reoffending. Under our reforms to the Incentives and Earned Privileges national policy framework, which came into effect in adult prisons on 1 November 2013, prisoners are expected to engage in purposeful activity, as well as demonstrate a commitment towards their rehabilitation, reduce their risk of reoffending, behave well and help others if they are to earn privileges. The number of prisoners working in industrial activity reported by public sector prisons increased from around 8,600 in 2010-11 (the first year for which figures are available) to around 9,900 in 2013-14. This delivered an increase in the total hours worked in industrial activities from 10.6 million hours to 14.2 million hours, as published in the National Offender Management Service Annual Report 2013-14: Management Information Addendum ( https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/prison-and-probation-trusts-performance-statistics-201314 ). Private sector prisons have also been supporting this agenda and have reported that they delivered over 1½ million prisoner working hours in commercial and industrial workshops in 2012-13 which provided work for over 1,200 prisoners. A breakdown of the proportion of the prison population that were working in industrial activities in male and female public sector prison establishments is set out in the table below for 2013-14, alongside the average number of prisoners working and the average population from which the proportions are calculated. Table 214620   Public sector prisons 2013-14Average Number of Prisoners Working in Industrial ActivityAverage Prisoner PopulationPercentage of Prisoner Population Working in Industrial ActivityFemale establishments   Askham Grange81008%Downview2813321%Drake Hall11029837%East Sutton Park179119%Eastwood Park83162%Foston Hall242918%Holloway104862%Low Newton5028517%New Hall9138324%Send3026711%Styal344298%Sub-total: female establishments410307813%Male establishments   Ashwell000%Aylesbury134133%Bedford274776%Belmarsh10880913%Birmingham000%Blantyre House81207%Blundeston8027929%Brinsford75261%Bristol316045%Buckley Hall7244116%Bullingdon174108916%Bullwood Hall000%Bure235624%Canterbury000%Cardiff707939%Channings Wood11972217%Chelmsford345676%Coldingley18150736%Cookham Wood000%Dartmoor11765218%Deerbolt414709%Durham218922%Erlestoke8348317%Everthorpe7167710%Exeter405308%Featherstone20168030%Feltham106212%Ford14251128%Frankland9679112%Full Sutton15160025%Garth22273430%Gartree16570324%Glen Parva657059%Gloucester000%Grendon/Springhill275415%Guys Marsh11157319%Hatfield242619%Haverigg10763317%Hewell120124210%High Down5610835%Highpoint146130611%Hollesley Bay274226%Holme House160117014%Hull97511%Huntercombe384189%Isis175923%Isle of Wight284112825%Kennet203047%Kingston000%Kirkham23761039%Kirklevington4728017%Lancaster Farms144783%Leeds114119210%Lewes506328%Leyhill16450832%Lincoln12266918%Lindholme11697912%Littlehey124108911%Liverpool143122012%Long Lartin19261131%Maidstone15154228%Manchester143112713%Moorland18596019%Morton Hall000%Mount17376423%North Sea Camp6540616%Northumberland183133114%Norwich11573816%Nottingham115103811%Onley9067013%Pentonville5013044%Portland125512%Preston366735%Ranby234107822%Risley242108922%Rochester6968510%Sheppey Cluster528278219%Shepton Mallet000%Shrewsbury000%Stafford18572825%Stocken14483217%Stoke Heath6967110%Sudbury13657923%Swansea4644210%Swinfen Hall306005%Thorn Cross3030810%Usk/Prescoed224934%Verne3925215%Wakefield15374321%Wandsworth11513658%Warren Hill000%Wayland25499925%Wealstun21281226%Wellingborough000%Wetherby000%Whatton20183724%Whitemoor7345416%Winchester556688%Wolds293568%Woodhill9278212%Sub-total: male establishments95056564914%Total: all establishments99166872714% Levels of industrial activity vary between sites. This variation is influenced by a number of factors, chiefly by the category and role of the prison and the types of prisoner available to work. For example the transient nature of the prisoner population in local establishments, as well as the requirements of commercial customers, mean that this is a more challenging, and often less suitable environment into which to introduce work. The physical capacity of prisons – primarily available space and operating environment – is an additional limiting factor. Many prisoners were built without large work shops. These differences in capacity and capability are reflected in prison Service Level Agreements and in the performance framework; establishments with higher capacity and capability to deliver industrial activity will have higher target hours and this will carry a higher weighting in the prison rating system than for establishments with lower levels of capacity. The regime in prisons is changing for convicted prisoners as NOMS implements the benchmark core day and the opportunities it provides to extend the working day as well as the potential to increase time in other activities including education. To support this, recreational activities will take place outside the main working part of the day. Information on the proportion of prisoners who decline to engage with work programmes is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Prisons: Education

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will discuss with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills the introduction of a tailored curriculum offering a mix of life skills and formal educational skills to build on established programmes in men's prisons.

Andrew Selous: Officials in the National Offender Management Service, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and Skills Funding Agency are working in partnership with learning providers to further develop the flexibility of the tailored curriculum approach. Once developed, new courses will be added to the menu available under the Offenders’ Learning and Skills Service (OLASS), accessible to male prisoners.We have introduced a tailored curriculum in women’s prisons. The same curriculum approach is accessible to male prisoners should Governors wish to commission this.

Prisons: Education

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what sanctions there are for (a) male and (b) female prisoners for not engaging in education or work programmes.

Andrew Selous: Both male and female prisoners are expected to engage in education and work, as directed, and those who do not can be dealt with under prisoner discipline procedures. Prisoners who intentionally fail to work properly or, being required to work, refuse to do so can be charged under the Prison Rules 1999 and Young Offender Institution Rules 2000. In addition to the range of punishments that can be incurred for offences against prison discipline, where prisoners attend work or education but fail to sufficiently engage, deductions from prisoners’ pay can be made for poor attendance to an activity place and/or for poor performance. The revised Incentives and Earned Privileges (IEP) policy framework came into effect on 1 November 2013 and, under it, adult prisoners are expected to demonstrate a commitment towards their rehabilitation, engage in purposeful activity (for example, attend work and/or education), reduce their risk of reoffending, behave well and help others. Prisoners who do not engage sufficiently with these requirements can be placed on the lowest level of the scheme.

Prisons: Education

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what support his Department offers to male prisoners who are reluctant to engage with education or work programmes.

Andrew Selous: We are committed to delivering purposeful activity in prisons, so that people have the best chance of not reoffending. Under the Offenders’ Learning and Skills Service (OLASS), resistant learners are offered personal and social development activities. This can increase their confidence and provide the motivation required to progress to formal learning and work activities. Where possible, learning is embedded into other regime activities. Prisoner Learning Representatives, Peer Mentors and Learning Champions offering help with reading and life skills and providing information, advice and guidance, individualised support and encourage other prisoners to engage in regime activities. OLASS providers offer individualised programmes of support to prisoners who present with a learning difficulty or disability.

Parole

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will bring forward proposals to make prisoners released on parole from life sentences ineligible for parole again if they reoffend.

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will bring forward proposals to restrict the right of prisoners to be eligible for parole on multiple occasions.

Mike Penning: Whilst crime is falling, sentences are getting more severe. Under this Government fewer individuals are entering the criminal justice system for the first time but those who do offend are more likely to go to prison, and for longer. Prisoners serving life sentences, imprisonment for public protection, certain extended determinate sentences and some historical long determinate sentences of four years or more for a serious sexual or violent crime committed prior to 5 April 2005, and also certain offenders who have been recalled for breach of their licence conditions, are subject to discretionary release by the Parole Board. A prisoner serving a life sentence or a sentence of imprisonment for public protection must serve their minimum term in full before being eligible for consideration for release. A prisoner serving an extended determinate sentence of 10 years or more must serve at least two-thirds of their custodial term before being considered for release, and a prisoner serving an historical long determinate sentence must serve at least half of their custodial term before being eligible to come before the Parole Board. All prisoners are subject to the same release test and they are only released (prior to any automatic release provisions which may apply in the case of determinate sentence prisoners) if the Parole Board is satisfied that it is safe to do so. Where an offender is turned down for parole his or her case is normally considered again after a period of two years in indeterminate sentence cases and one year for those serving determinate sentences.  Where an offender is released on licence but then commits a further offence and is recalled to prison, unless the prisoner is subject to a fixed term recall, he or she may serve the rest of their sentence in custody unless the Parole Board considers it safe to re-release the prisoner. Fixed term recalls are not available for offenders serving indeterminate or extended sentences. The sentence imposed for the further offence may also affect when the offender next becomes eligible to be considered for release. The seriousness of the further offence committed, the offender’s general behaviour on licence and their level of risk will, of course, be important factors which the Parole Board will take into account when considering re-release. Where a recalled offender is serving an indeterminate sentence it is possible that they will remain in prison for the rest of their life, and other offenders serving determinate sentences may remain in prison until the end of their custodial term, but it is important to review their progress regularly to determine whether or not the offender’s continued detention is necessary to protect the public. The Government has no current plans to change the above arrangements.

Prisons: Crimes of Violence

Mr Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what offences committed in prison will be subject to trial rather than be dealt with by the prison adjudicator; and what estimate he has made of the potential additional costs to the public purse arising from such trials and associated legal aid and custodial time costs.

Mr Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department's press release of 16 November 2014 entitled Crackdown on violence in prisons, how his Department plans to (a) measure and (b) monitor the effect of the new joint protocol on violence in prisons on the number of assaults on prison staff.

Mr Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department's press release of 16 November 2014 entitled Crackdown on violence in prisons, what consultations his Department carried out with unions and professional associations on policy options to reduce violence in prisons before implementing the joint protocol on violence in prisons.

Mr Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department's press release of 16 November 2014 entitled Crackdown on violence in prisons, what estimate he has made of the number of additional court appearances which will result from the implementation of the joint protocol on violence in prisons.

Mr Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department's press release of 16 November 2014 entitled Crackdown on violence in prisons, what estimate he has made of the aggregate increase in days of imprisonment which will result from convictions for criminal offences conducted in prison under the joint protocol on violence in prisons; and what estimate he has made of the additional prison places required to accommodate that increase.

Andrew Selous: Any crime committed in prison is liable to be reported to the police depending on the aggravating and mitigating factors present and many offences committed in prison are already investigated by the police. The recently announced protocol on appropriate handling of crimes in prison sets out those crimes within prisons, including violent crimes, which must be reported by establishments to the police for consideration for investigation. It will be published before the end of the financial year following final consultation. The NOMS Unions are supportive of the protocol. Potential costs arising from any increase in the number of serious crimes that will now be dealt with by way of the Criminal Justice System rather than the prison disciplinary system will depend on a number of factors and the costs are expected to be covered through prioritising within existing Police and Departmental budgets for handling crime. The aim of the protocol is to strengthen existing policy and requirements on the reporting of crime. It is not intended to remove the internal prison adjudication system which can still be a cost effective means of dealing with minor crime in prison. We do not anticipate large numbers of additional crimes being processed through the courts as a result of this protocol. Rather, the protocol will be used to ensure that in those instances where a serious assault or other serious crime occurs there is greater consistency across prison, police and CPS areas in how it is dealt with so that this type of crime can be targeted. The protocol is subject to annual evaluation and review by the signatories. Tackling violence in prisons is a major priority of this Government and appropriate steps are being taken to manage increased levels of violence within a complex and challenging prison population. We will be issuing new guidance on managing violence early next year. The impact of the overall package of violence management measures will be monitored closely in the coming year. Consultation on all aspects of the revised violence management policy is ongoing. Trade Unions will be included in this consultation.

Northumberland Prison

Mr David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether homosexual prisoners taking part in the Sex Offender Treatment Programme delivered at HM Prison Northumberland are having additional weighting points allocated on the grounds of their sexual orientation; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Selous: National Offender Management Service does not, as part of the Sex Offender Treatment Programme, use a prisoner's sexual orientation when coding and allocating them to a particular risk level.

Contempt of Court: Sentencing

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, in how many cases of imprisonment for contempt of court in January 2014 there has been no published judgment on Bailii.

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he plans to take steps to implement the recommendation contained in paragraph 48, subsection iv of 2014 EWCA Civ 1477.

Simon Hughes: We have been clear that there needs to be more openness in the Family Courts and are grateful to the President of the Family Division for his ongoing work on this issue. On contempt, the Guidance issued in 2013 by the Lord Chief Justice and President of the Family Division made clear that contempt decisions must be announced in public. Where a hearing for committal is exceptionally held in private, the judge must set out the reasons for doing so in public. Judgments are posted on the British and Irish Legal Information Institute’s website. Information on the courts who commit people to prison for contempt is already collected and recorded where supplied, and this guidance will result in greater consistency in the information which can be collected. The Ministry of Justice does not hold information on cases of imprisonment for contempt of court where there has been no published judgment on BAILII. BAILII is not a Government publication.

Legal Aid Scheme

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the cost of enabling vitims of human trafficking to access legal aid in each of the last three years.

Mr Shailesh Vara: Civil legal aid is available to help victims of human trafficking in relation to applications for leave to enter or remain in the UK, and also for claims for damages or under employment law brought by victims of human trafficking arising in connection with their exploitation. These services are set out in paragraph 32 of Schedule 1 to the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012. Victims of human trafficking are also able to apply for any other civil legal aid service for which they are eligible. The Legal Aid Agency does not routinely collect information on the circumstances of applicants for legal aid, except where this is directly relevant to the application. This includes whether or not applicants are victims of human trafficking, which was not relevant to any legal aid applications before the introduction of LASPO or for services other than those described under paragraph 32 of Schedule 1 to LASPO since. Data is being collected on services provided under paragraph 32, but due to the length of time it takes for cases to conclude, we do not have a clear picture of funding since implementation of LASPO. As a result, it is not possible accurately to estimate the total cost of enabling victims of human trafficking to access legal aid for the period requested.

Crown Dependencies

Mr Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he next plans to visit (a) the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey and (b) other Crown Dependencies; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Shailesh Vara: Her Majesty’s Government values its good working relationship with the Crown Dependencies. Ministry of Justice Ministers are in regular contact with representatives of the Crown Dependencies' Governments in furtherance of maintaining that relationship. Whilst the Justice Secretary has no current plans to visit the Crown Dependencies in the immediate future, he was able to accept an invitation to attend this year’s Tynwald Day Ceremony in the Isle of Man. Furthermore, my noble Friend, Lord Faulks, Minister with responsibility for the Crown Dependencies, has visited the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey within the last 12 months. He met with the Isle of Man’s Chief Minister this month and plans to visit the Isle of Man in the near future.

Elections: Sark

Mr Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department plans to send an observer to Sark for the Chief Pleas election on 10 December 2014.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The decision to appoint an observer to monitor the election is a matter for The Chief Pleas, the Island's parliament. The Chief Pleas confirmed to my Department last week that they had decided to appoint an independent external election observer to report on the arrangements made for, and the conduct of, the election and make any recommendations for the conduct of future elections that they see fit.

Youth Custody

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2014 to Question 213434, which individual ethnic groups made up the proportion of black, Asian and minority ethnic offenders in youth custody in each year since May 2010.

Andrew Selous: The Youth Justice Board works with a range of partners to address the over-representation of Black and Minority Ethnic young people in the criminal justice system. The table below provides further details of the categories used to record Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic offenders in youth custody.Ethnic Group Breakdown of ethnic groupBlack /Black BritishCaribbean/African/Other BlackAsian/Asian BritishIndian/Pakistan/Bangladeshi/Other AsianMixedWhite-Black Caribbean/White-Black African/White-Asian /Other MixedChinese/Other ethnic groupChinese/other

Youth Offending Teams

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many officials from his Department are working on the Youth Offending Team Stock Take announced by the Minister for Prisons, Probation and Rehabilitation on 17 November 2014.

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which youth offending teams will be included in the sample that will be the focus of the fieldwork carried out for the Youth Offending Team Stock Take announced by the Minister for Prisons, Probation and Rehabilitation on 17 November 2014.

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what budget his Department has allocated to the youth offending team stock take announced by the Minister for Prisons, Probation and Rehabilitation on 17 November 2014.

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when his Department plans to publish the results of the youth offending team stock take announced by the Minister for Prisons, Probation and Rehabilitation on 17 November 2014; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Selous: Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) play a key part in the youth justice system and the Government recognises their valuable contribution to the recent successes of the system. We want to improve our understanding of how YOTs are operating and how they have evolved in light of the changing circumstances surrounding the delivery of local youth justice services. We are working closely with the Youth Justice Board to finalise the details of this stocktake, which will establish a clearer picture of how the YOT model is operating nationwide.

Youth Custody

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2014 to Question 213434, what the (a) average number and (b) proportion of Black and minority ethnic offenders in youth custody was in each (i) young offenders' institution, (ii) secure training centre and (c) secure children's home in each year since May 2010.

Andrew Selous: The Youth Justice Board (YJB) works with a range of partners to address the over-representation of Black and Minority Ethnic young people in the criminal justice system. Table 1 shows the monthly average population of Black and Minority Ethnic young people aged under 18 years old in custody in each Secure Children's Home, Secure Training Centre and Young Offender Institution in each year since April 2010. Table 1: Monthly average population of Black and Minority Ethnic young people aged under 18 in custody by establishment Establishment TypeEstablishment2010/112011/122012/132013/14[1]Secure Children's HomesAldine House1001Atkinson Unit0000Aycliffe3232Barton Moss2121Beechfield0000Clayfields House3323East Moor3534Hillside2122Kyloe House1000Leverton Secure Unit0000Lincolnshire Secure Unit1112Red Bank2113Swanwick Lodge3165Vinney Green5688Secure Training CentresHassockfield3333Medway25213434Oakhill26343734Rainsbrook17172727Young Offender InstitutionsAshfield103108771Castington0000Cookham Wood51465450Downview4431Eastwood Park0320Feltham122108117129Foston Hall0000Hindley39473933Huntercombe15000New Hall1100Parc5977Stoke Heath35000Warren Hill54455233Werrington35445648Wetherby45514341  Table 2 shows the proportions of Black and Minority Ethnic young people aged under 18 years old in custody in each secure children's home, secure training centre and young offender institution in each year since April 2010. Table 2: Proportion of Black and Minority Ethnic young people aged under 18 in custody by establishment Establishment TypeEstablishment2010/112011/122012/132013/14*Secure Children's HomesAldine House15%6%3%29%Atkinson Unit0%0%0%0%Aycliffe14%6%16%15%Barton Moss13%3%9%5%Beechfield100%0%0%0%Clayfields House19%18%19%20%East Moor10%23%16%19%Hillside15%9%13%13%Kyloe House100%0%0%0%Leverton Secure Unit0%0%0%0%Lincolnshire Secure Unit9%13%9%25%Red Bank8%2%9%22%Swanwick Lodge30%12%51%54%Vinney Green28%30%39%39%Secure Training CentresHassockfield7%7%7%8%Medway37%29%50%49%Oakhill34%45%52%46%Rainsbrook22%21%37%34%Young Offender InstitutionsAshfield39%37%45%50%Castington11%0%0%0%Cookham Wood49%42%55%51%Downview43%34%36%57%Eastwood Park2%25%34%0%Feltham57%52%68%69%Foston Hall21%0%0%0%Hindley14%16%21%23%Huntercombe55%0%0%0%New Hall12%8%6%0%Parc9%18%17%13%Stoke Heath34%0%0%0%Warren Hill42%42%48%56%Werrington33%34%49%48%Wetherby15%17%18%21%  Average population figures are based on 12 monthly snapshots of the custodial population in the youth secure estate, taken on the last Friday of the month or first Friday of the following month, depending on which is nearer to the actual month end. The average figures are rounded to the nearest whole number. This means that if the average number of young people in an establishment is less than 0.5, the number is rounded to zero. The proportion figures in Table 2 are based on the unrounded averages and so may be greater than zero despite a rounded average of zero. For example, Beechfield SCH had only one young person appear in one monthly snapshot in 2010/11, which gives an average annual population of 0.08 (1 divided by 12), and is rounded to 0 in Table 1. As this was a Black and Minority Ethnic young person, the proportion figure in Table 2 shows 100% of all young people in Beechfield in 2010/11 were Black and Minority Ethnic. Data for 2009/10 to 2011/12 comes from the YJB's Secure Accommodation Clearing House System (SACHS) database. Data from April 2012 comes from the YJB's eAsset database which replaced the SACHS database for placing young people in custody. The following establishments have been decommissioned during this period: Atkinson Unit and Kyloe House in April 2010 (though the YJB spot purchased beds from them on occasion after this date), Ashfield in July 2013, Castington in August 2010, Downview in August 2013, Eastwood Park in July 2013, Foston Hall in January 2011, Huntercombe in August 2010, New Hall in July 2013, Stoke Heath in July 2011, Warren Hill in February 2014. These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing and can be subject to change over time.

Employment Tribunals Service

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the implementation of the introduction of fees for employment tribunals.

Mr Shailesh Vara: Fees were implemented in the Employment tribunals on 29 July 2013. The implementation project for fees was delivered on time and to budget, and around 70% of employment tribunal claims are now received on-line. Fees are part of the Government’s broader package of Employment reforms. In particular, we want to encourage people to avoid long drawn out disputes which emotionally damage workers and financially damage businesses. From 6 May, anyone contemplating bringing a claim to the Employment tribunals must first consider ACAS conciliation, which is provided free of charge. The early results are encouraging. The Government is committed to undertaking a review of Employment tribunal fees and we will be bringing forward our plans on the scope and timing of the review in due course.

Employment Tribunals Service

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of whether tribunal fees are deterring legitimate claims being made.

Mr Shailesh Vara: It is not the Government’s intention to deter people from bringing legitimate claims to the Employment Tribunals, and we do not believe that is the case. The purpose of introducing fees was to transfer some of the cost of the tribunals from the taxpayer to those who use them, where they can afford to do so. The Government is committed to undertaking a review of Employment Tribunal fees and we will be bringing forward our plans on the scope and timing of the review in due course.

Employment Tribunals Service

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the change in the number of employment tribunal claims by women was between 2012 and 2013.

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the change in the number of employment tribunal claims by people with disabilities was between 2012 and 2013.

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the change in the number of employment tribunal claims for redundancy  was between 2012 and 2013.

Mr Shailesh Vara: There is currently no requirement to declare a disability when making a claim to the employment tribunal. Therefore I am unable to answer this question. There were 87,200 employment tribunal claims by women in 2012 and 75,700 in 2013. In 2012 there were 22,139 claims which included a redundancy jurisdiction and in 2013 there were 15,927. (1)  It cannot be right that hardworking taxpayers should pick up the bill for employment disputes in tribunals. It is reasonable to expect people to pay towards the £74m bill taxpayers' face for providing the service. But it is important to emphasise that the Government has been very careful in ensuring that those who have limited means have fee waivers and are not excluded from seeking redress in tribunals. The Ministry of Justice publishes, annually and quarterly, statistical data on workload trends in employment tribunals, including jurisdictional breakdowns. The most recent Tribunal Statistics quarterly tables are available at the following address: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/352915/tribunal-statistics-tables-apr-june-2014.xls. (1) Redundancy claims can be claims for Redundancy Pay or Redundancy failure to inform and consult.

Legal Aid Agency

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which proceeding types are recorded on the Legal Aid Agency's IT systems for recording applications for civil legal aid.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The proceeding types recorded on the Legal Aid Agency IT systems can be found in the documents “Civil Representation Guidance on Proceeding Codes: Proceedings Codes and Standard Wordings for post-April 2013 Certificates” and “Guidance for reporting Controlled Work & Controlled Work matters” which can be found on gov.uk website at the following links: Civil Representation Guidance on Proceeding Codes: Proceedings Codes and Standard Wordings for post-April 2013 Certificates: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/345608/legal-aid-proceeding-codes-guide-april-2013.pdf Guidance for reporting Controlled Work & Controlled Work matters: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/339468/guidance-for-reporting-controlled-work-matters.pdf

Ministry of Defence

Israel

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Israeli Defence Force officers have visited UK defence establishments since 1 July 2014; and what the purpose of each such visit was.

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many UK military personnel have had official meetings with the Israeli Defence Force since 1 July 2014; and what the purpose of each such meeting was.

Mr Philip Dunne: Holding answer received on 17 October 2014



Israel is an important strategic partner of the UK and, as part of that relationship, the Ministry of Defence has an ongoing and wide ranging dialogue with the Israeli Defence Force and Israeli Ministry of Defence. This engagement is in line with the Government's policy of supporting the Middle East peace process by having a balanced relationship with the Israelis and the Palestinians. Due to the widespread nature of our engagement with Israel throughout the Services the requested information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Armed Forces

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the (a) service liability, (b) funded strength and (c) total paid service strength is for the (i) Royal Navy, (ii) Army and (iii) Royal Air Force.

Mr Mark Francois: Holding answer received on 22 October 2014



In order to facilitate a clearer public understanding the Ministry of Defence now uses the term "requirement" in place of "service liability" in its publications, although this is effectively the same thing. Likewise, we now refer to "trained strength" rather than "funded strength" and "paid strength".Information on the requirements and full time trained strengths of UK Armed Forces, including a breakdown by Service, is published in the UK Armed Forces Monthly Personnel Report. The latest edition includes data as at 1 September 2014 and is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/361249/MPR_September_2014.pdf

Iraq

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many targets the Royal Air Force has hit in Iraq since 26 September 2014; how many casualties have occurred as a result; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Mark Francois: Holding answer received on 22 October 2014



As of 12 November, the UK has conducted 16 strikes in Iraq from Tornado and Reaper aircraft using Paveway IV bombs and Hellfire and Brimstone missiles against a range of targets including vehicles, troop positions, heavy weapons and facilities. Assessments of these strikes have shown that they hit and destroyed their targets successfully. An accurate count of ISIL casualties cannot always be made in this type of environment. All air strikes are conducted in accordance with the Rules of Engagement and international humanitarian law. Careful selection, approval and close observation of targets prior to a strike and the use of precision guided munitions minimises collateral damage and the potential for civilian casualties. To date we have not received any reports of civilian casualties, which is supported by our own analysis of each attack.

Public Opinion

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department spent on (a) focus groups and (b) surveys in (i) 2013 and (ii) 2014 to date.

Anna Soubry: Holding answer received on 05 November 2014



The amount spent on focus groups and surveys is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Sierra Leone

Mr Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the terms of engagement are of the deployment to Sierra Leone to tackle Ebola.

Mr Mark Francois: The current Ebola crisis in West Africa is beyond the capacity of national authorities and NGOs to tackle alone. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is assisting the Department for International Development in providing a key component in the UK's response. MOD involvement will enable the provision of direct medical care and the implementation of measures needed to contain a wider outbreak, and thus help keep Britain safe from the disease.

Offshore Industry

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which military assets are tasked with the defence of UK-owned maritime offshore installations.

Mr Mark Francois: Defence provides support to the civil powers in defence of UK-owned maritime offshore installations through the provision of a guaranteed maritime capability, in excess of that which the civil powers can provide for themselves. This ranges from advice, through surveillance and reconnaissance to military intervention.

Middle East

Mr Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether any RAF pilots have operated US air force aircraft over Iraq or Syria.

Mr Mark Francois: During recent operations as part of the coalition, up to and including 10 November 2014, no RAF pilots have operated US Air Force aircraft over Iraq or Syria.

Armed Forces: Young People

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many service personnel under the age of 18 have been sent to a combat zone in each year since 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Armed Forces: Malaria

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many service personnel have been prescribed the Lariam form of mefloquine in each month of 2014 to date; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Armed Forces: Malaria

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what guidance his Department gives on the prescribing of mefloquine to armed forces personnel; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Army: Recruitment

Mr Brian H. Donohoe: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Army recruitment offices have been closed in (a) the UK and (b) Scotland in the last 12 months.

Mr Brian H. Donohoe: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has given recent consideration to increasing the number of armed forces information centres in Scotland.

Mr Brian H. Donohoe: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Army recruitment offices there are in (a) the UK and (b) Scotland.

Mr Julian Brazier: No Army recruitment offices have been closed in the UK or Scotland in the last 12 months. There are currently 74 recruiting offices in the UK, of which five are in Scotland. A trial is currently being conducted into the deployment of mobile careers centres at locations throughout the UK, including Scotland. Whilst physical recruitment offices do have a role to play, research shows that today's target audience is twice as likely to look online for career guidance and advice. Given the improved digital access and contact that we now provide, a number of Army recruiting offices were closed in 2012 and 2013. However, there remains a recruiting office within a reasonable travelling distance of over 90% of the target population.

Type 26 Frigates

Sandra Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether there has been a change to the Government's policy that the type 26 frigates will be built in Scotland; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Government is committed to the future of shipbuilding in the UK. Complex warships for the Royal Navy are only built in UK shipyards.The Type 26 Global Combat Ship programme is currently in its Assessment Phase. While the build contract has not yet been awarded, from 2015 the only shipyards in the UK that are able to build complex warships will be those on the Clyde.

Armed Forces: Suicide

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many cases of suicide by serving armed forces personnel occurred between 1 October 2008 and 31 December 2012.

Anna Soubry: Between 1 October 2008 and 31 December 2012, there were 49 Coroner - confirmed suicides amongst UK Armed Forces personnel.The most recent detailed analysis of this issue, in the National Statistics' publication Suicide and Open Verdict Deaths in the UK Regular Armed Forces 1984 - 2013 indicated a declining trend in all three services.The Ministry of Defence is committed to providing our service personnel with the best possible quality of mental health and welfare support. Commanding officers in each of the services are given clear guidance on the management of individuals who are potentially vulnerable or at risk for a variety of reasons, including the risk of suicide or deliberate self-harm.

Health Services: Veterans

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of access to NHS care for veterans.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Army: Ayrshire

Mr Brian H. Donohoe: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the annual recruitment figure to the Army from Central Ayrshire was in each of the last five years.

Mr Julian Brazier: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Army Reserve

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which minister of his Department signed off the decisions to raise the upper age limit of recruitment in the Army Reserve from (a) 43 to 52 years old for former regular forces personnel and (b) 45 to 50 for those with specialist skills to become officers.

Mr Julian Brazier: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Army Reserve

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what skills and background qualify an applicant for officer posts in the Army Reserve to be considered when that applicant is aged between 45 and 50.

Mr Julian Brazier: Applicants for Army Reserve Officer posts aged between 45 and 50 may enter as generalists or specialists. For general entry officers, i.e. those applying for non-specialist roles, an individual would be expected to demonstrate the same skills and qualities as applicants under 45. These include a commitment to personal fitness, leadership potential and the qualities required to be an Army Officer.In addition to the skills and qualities for general entry Officers, specialist Officer applicants should demonstrate specific skills, competence or qualification in a field which is relevant to the skills and capability needs of the Army. Examples include medical and veterinary professionals, lawyers, engineers and cyber and cultural specialists.

Armed Forces: Training

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average cost was of providing basic training to new regular recruits to (a) the Army, (b) the Royal Navy and (c) the Royal Air Force in each of the last three years.

Mr Mark Francois: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, for the cost of Army phase one and phase two training in each of the last three years I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 11 September 2014 (Official Report, column 728W) to the right hon. Member for Mid Sussex (Sir Nicholas Soames).

Army Reserve

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what (a) medical, (b) security and (c) other administrative stages there are in the process of joining the Army Reserve; and what average length of time it takes his Department to process each application through each such stage.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the average length of time that applicants to the Army Reserve wait before their initial application forms are received and medical and security clearance is provided.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what average length of time applicants to the Army Reserve waited before their initial application forms were received and medical and security clearance was provided in 2014 to date.

Mr Julian Brazier: The Department does not routinely record the length of time it takes each candidate to progress through individual stages of the recruiting process; the focus is on the overall length of time it takes individuals to complete the entire process from application to enlistment. A number of changes have been implemented to simplify and streamline the recruiting process and have enabled those candidates who are willing and able to progress rapidly from application to enlistment, currently the shortest completion time by an individual is 46 days.Applications to join the Army Reserve are made online. Applications are received immediately and the candidate will receive an email confirming their application has been received. Candidates then complete an online medical form received shortly after submitting their application. Following successful completion of this initial medical filter and a face-to-face interview, conducted at an Army or Armed Forces Careers Centre or by their unit for officer and soldier applicants respectively, the candidate will then receive the Recruiting Group Medical Declaration form via email. The candidate is responsible for arranging its completion with their GP. There is no delay to the candidate's progress through the recruiting pipeline during this time as under changes immplemented in recent months, they are able to attend the Assessment Centre and provisionally enlist prior to receipt of the GP completed Recruiting Group Medical Declaration form.The security clearance process has also been streamlined to remove unnecessary delay. Army Reserve candidates, except in Northern Ireland, can enlist as soon as their Baseline Personnel Security Standard application is submitted, usually at the Assessment Centre following successful attendance. Those individuals with roles that require Security Clearance need to have received clearance before attending Phase Two training. These Reservists are, however, able to commence the initial training with limited supervised access to assets and information prior to receiving their Security Clearance.Assessment Centre's capacity has increased incrementally by 64% from August through to the end of November and by 89% in weekend capacity over the same period. Units are able to book groups of candidates for weekend assessments, allowing recruits to progress as a cohort. In addition Reserve candidates have priority for all weekend assessment centre slots.

Army Reserve

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many people have signed up to join the Army Reserve prior to the completion of all their medical, security, and other administrative stages in each month of 2014 to date; and how many such people have not progressed as a result of failing any of those subsequent stages.

Mr Julian Brazier: The Army is able to put forward for enlistment those Reserve candidates whose identity has been confirmed and whose pre-employment security checks have been submitted, but not yet cleared. Records are not held of those whose pre-employment checks are unsuccessful. From 6 October 2014 Army Reserve candidates have been eligible for enlistment at Army Assessment Centres prior to their medical declaration forms being received and cleared by Army doctors. To date only one candidate has been unsuccessful under this process. This is part of the wider effort to ensure that Army Reserve candidates experience the most efficient and effective application process possible. The total number of Army Reserve candidates enlisted prior to the completion of security and medical checks is shown in the following:  JanuaryFebruaryMarchAprilMayJuneJulyAugust September October NovemberSecurity Check1459020019085205180120 190 265 170Medicaln/an/an/an/an/an/an/an/a n/a 15 35 Figures have been rounded to the nearest 5.

Army: Recruitment

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what costs his Department incurred for the Recruitment Partnering Project in each of the last three months.

Mr Julian Brazier: The total expenditure incurred, including accrued expenditure, for the Recruiting Partnering Project in each of the last three months is:August £11.603 millionSeptember £12.356 millionOctober £12. 260 million

Libya

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2014 to Question 213401, what specific terms and standards of conduct were breached by Libyan service personnel on each occasion since June 2014.

Mr Mark Francois: Breaches of acceptable standards of conduct by the Libyan General Purpose Force trainees included refusal to train, threatening behaviour towards others, leaving camp without permission/unauthorised off camp visits, property damage and criminal charges. During the period of training , fewer than ten Libyan personnel were asked by the Government to leave the training programme.

Reserve Forces: Engineers

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2014 to Question 211796, how many engineers have been recruited into the (a) Army Reserves, (b) Royal Navy Reserves and (c) Royal Air Force Reserves in each year since 2010.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Armed Forces: Recruitment

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department spent on television recruitment campaigns for (a) the Army, (b) the Royal Navy, (c) the Royal Air Force and (d) in total in the last 12 months.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Armed Forces: Deployment

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many deployments of UK military personnel have been on the basis of a UN resolution in the last five years; what the cost of those deployments has been; and what funds the UN has contributed towards the cost of those deployments.

Mr Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Armed Forces: Animals

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) horses and (b) dogs were euthanised by his Department in each month in 2013 and 2014; and what the reasons were in each such case.

Anna Soubry: Decisions to euthanise any animal in military service are only taken by a veterinarian officer after all possible treatment avenues have been exhausted and where it is considered to be the most humane option for the animal. The only other scenario where an animal would be euthanised is where it is considered to pose a risk to public safety. The numbers of horses and dogs euthanised by the Department in each month during 2013 and until 31 October 2014 with reasons are provided in the attached tables.  



214615 - Military Working Horses & Dogs Euthanasia
(Word Document, 95 KB)

Germany

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of (a) armed forces personnel, (b) civilian staff, (c) equipment and (d) other British military assets have been withdrawn from Germany since 2013.

Anna Soubry: The proportion of Armed Forces Regular personnel and civilian staff who have withdrawn from Germany between the period 1 January 2013 and 1 October 2014 was 25.8% and 21.1% respectively. I am unable to provide the proportion of equipment and other assets as this information is not held centrally in the format requested.

Germany

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department has spent on running its military base in Germany in each year since 2010.

Anna Soubry: The cost of running British Forces Germany by financial year (FY) is as follows: FY 2010-11 £537 millionFY 2011-12 £457 millionFY 2012-13 £442 millionFY 2013-14 £405 million Costs include military and civilian personnel, administration, IT, training, healthcare, Service Childrens Education, contracted services, Pay As You Dine, laundry, accommodation stores, housing and utility costs. Figures have been rounded to the nearest million.

Armed Forces: Uniforms

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions his Department had had with the Royal Marines on that corps' decision to procure waterproofs through NATO; and what conclusions he has drawn from those discussions.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Defence Clothing Team, part of Defence Equipment and Support, is responsible for providing all waterproof clothing to the Royal Marines (RM).In 2013 the RM identified a requirement for a new windproof suit as part of its Mountain and Cold Weather Warfare range of clothing. Following trials, suitable items, which were also waterproof, were procured by the Defence Clothing Team using an existing contract let by the NATO Logistic Support Agency.

Armed Forces: Uniforms

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the supply chain is of his Department's current waterproof provider; and in what locations those garments are manufactured.

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Taped Seam contract will include a development clause for waterproofs for future armed forces clothing requirements.

Mr Philip Dunne: The new Waterproof Garments contract, commonly known as the Taped Seam Contract, will include a design and development clause for future requirements.Waterproof clothing is supplied to the Ministry of Defence, under the Waterproof Garments Contract, by ITURRI SA. The company currently manufactures the waterproof garments in Morocco and Vietnam. The cloth used in manufacture is sourced from Italy.

Armed Forces: Education

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what costs (a) have been and (b) will be incurred by his Department for the (i) design and (ii) editing of the British Armed Forces Learning Resource 2014.

Anna Soubry: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 6 November 2014, Question 212451.



Hansard Extract 6 November 2014.
(Word Document, 34 KB)

Armed Forces: Recruitment

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans his Department has to raise the recruitment age for members of the (a) Royal Navy Reserve, (b) Royal Air Force Reserve and (c) regular forces.

Mr Julian Brazier: There are currently no plans to revise the recruitment ages for members of the Royal Naval Reserve, the Royal Air Force Reserve or the Regular Armed Forces but the Services keep their recruitment age ranges under review based on their skills requirements.

Military Decorations

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, to whom honours for courage and gallantry have been posthumously awarded since 1984; and when (a) the incident to which each award relates occurred and (b) each such honour was granted.

Mr Philip Dunne: Information on recipients of posthumous and gallantry awards is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Qatar

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will list all meetings between Ministers in his Department and representatives of Qatari defence companies in each of the last four years.

Mr Philip Dunne: Details of Ministerial Meetings with External Organisations are routinely published as part of our Quarterly Transparency Return and can be obtained via our official report:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministers-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings.The data from May 2010 to 31 March 2014 is published there. That from 1 April 2014 will be published in due course.

Health Services: Veterans

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment he has made of the quality of NHS care for veterans.

Anna Soubry: The vast majority of Service leavers are fit and well, and no individual injured in the course of their duty leaves the Armed Forces until it is the right thing for them, however long that takes. Veterans with health concerns enjoy the same excellent standard of healthcare from the NHS as other UK citizens, and in line with the principles of the Armed Forces Covenant, receive priority treatment for conditions resulting from service, subject to the clinical needs of others.

Armed Forces: Complaints

Duncan Hames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to improve the Service complaints system.

Anna Soubry: The outgoing Commissioner, Dr Susan Atkins, and I are confident that an effective and fair complaints system has been agreed and is contained in the Bill now going through Parliament. It is one that will give Service Personnel access to a redress system they deserve. Last Tuesday, I was delighted to announce that Nicola Williams is the Government’s preferred candidate for the post of Service Complaints Commissioner, and she will now go forward to a House of Commons Defence Committee pre-appointment hearing on Wednesday 26 November. She is an outstanding candidate and I am sure she will undertake the role with great vigour and insight.

Department for Work and Pensions

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether any (a) external contractors and (b) consultancy companies engaged by his Department have charged more than the initial price agreed for their services since May 2010.

Steve Webb: DWP engages external contractors through a Crown Commercial Service neutral vendor contract. Each contractor is engaged for a set period and at an agreed daily rate. If it is necessary to extend the period of engagement then a new work order is put in place. DWP pays consultancy companies on either a fixed price or a time and materials basis as agreed in the contract. A purchase order is put in place for the contract and DWP’s financial systems do not allow for overpayment against the purchase order. Where further work is required over and above that initially agreed then a variation to the contract and purchase order is put in place.

Employment: Older People

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to help people who plan to work beyond pension age.

Steve Webb: This Government has abolished the default retirement age, extended the right to request flexible working, and will be giving people more freedom in how they draw their pension pots to smooth the transition to retirement. The Department also published “Fuller Working Lives - A Framework for Action” in June, which set out the business case for employing older workers and included the following actions: - DWP to work more closely with Local Enterprise Partnerships to encourage them to focus on the issue of fuller working lives in their local area;- DH, DWP and GEO to launch a trial on carers in employment and the role assistive technology can play in helping them to combine work and care:- A number of pilots with Jobcentre Plus on back to work support for carers; and- DWP to develop a new guidance toolkit for employers - this will build on the existing Age Positive employer guidance. In July 2014, Dr Ros Altmann was appointed as the Business Champion for Older Workers and is making the case for the importance of fuller working lives for individuals, employers and wider society.

Children: Maintenance

Dame Anne Begg: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to his Department's consultation, child maintenance: closing cases in Segments 3 and 4 simultaneously, published on 27 October 2014, what effect such simultaneous closure will have on (a) forecast volumes and the cost of calls demands to the Child Maintenance Options Service, (b) forecast volumes and cost of recruitment and training of new staff for the Child Maintenance Options Service and (c) forecast staff numbers and costs associated with the validation of child maintenance arrears in closed cases in the year from April 2015.

Steve Webb: Child Maintenance Group is still considering the precise number of case closure letters that will be issued each week for Segments 3 and 4. Consequently, it isn’t yet possible to describe how confirmed letter numbers will influence forecasting assumptions. As all CSA cases will need to be closed over the agreed transitional timeline, resource demands will remain the same regardless of whether Segments 3 and 4 are implemented simultaneously.

Children: Maintenance

Dame Anne Begg: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to his Department's consultation, child maintenance: closing cases in Segments 3 and 4 simultaneously, published on 27 October 2014, whether such simultaneous closure will affect the contract between G4S and his Department on the anticipated level of call demands to the Child Maintenance Options Service for the years 2015 and 2016.

Steve Webb: The proposed, simultaneous closure of Segment 3 and 4 cases will not affect the nature of the Child Maintenance Options supplier contract between G4S and DWP. This contract’s governance arrangement provides for operational resources to be reviewed each month and agreed for three months in advance, taking account of actual service demands versus forecasted business volumes.

Unemployment: Young People

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the reasons for the rise in long-term unemployment for 18 to 24 year olds shown in the labour market statistics on 12 November 2014; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: Over the last year the number of 18-24 year olds unemployed for a year or more on the International Labour Organisation (ILO) measure has fallen by around a quarter. The number claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance for more than a year has nearly halved. Under the last Government, figures for long term JSA were kept artificially low by “breaking” claims with training allowances. This Government stopped doing that when we introduced the Work Programme, meaning we now have a true measure of the number of young people claiming benefit due to unemployment.

Jobcentre Plus

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Jobcentre Plus staff were promoted to a higher grade in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11, (c) 2011-12, (d) 2012-13 and (e) 2013-14.

Steve Webb: Data that is available for the number of people promoted to a higher grade in Jobcentre Plus is set out in the following table. Promotions in DWP   Total DWPJobcentre PlusApr 09 - Mar 104,3592,652Apr 10 - Mar 1137662Apr 11 - Mar 125816 *Apr 12 - Mar 131,817-Apr 13 - Mar 14572-  *Note- Jobcentre Plus ceased to exist as a separate organisation in October 2011 and was consumed within the wider Department for Work and Pensions. Information for Jobcentre Plus is therefore not available beyond September 2011 and Jobcentre Plus information for April 11 – Mar 12 is part year only.

Jobcentre Plus

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of Jobcentre Plus advisers was from a black and minority ethnic group in each of the last five years.

Steve Webb: The information requested is not available.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the total amount of benefit withheld as a result of benefit sanctions was in each of the last 10 years.

Esther McVey: The Department does not estimate the amount of benefit withheld as a result of benefit sanctions. There are no benchmarks or targets for sanctions referrals. The sanctions regime is designed to ensure claimants comply with their requirements in order to move off benefits and into work.

Mesothelioma: Compensation

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme, whether he plans to publish the proportion which the levy represents of the total employers' liability gross written premium.

Mr Mark Harper: DWP will carry out an annual review of the scheme as set out within the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme Regulations 2014. The report will set out amongst other things the detailed costs of the Scheme and information about the levy and how it was calculated. The first report under this regulation will be published on or before 30th November 2015.

Mesothelioma: Compensation

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he intends to use his powers under section 13, sub-section 2(b) of the Mesothelioma Act 2014 to reduce the total amount of the first levy on relevant active issuers designed to meet the costs of the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme.

Mr Mark Harper: I will announce the total amount of the first levy which will cover the estimated costs of the Scheme in the financial year 2014-15 when the regulations laid in Parliament on 7 November concerning the levy have come into effect. Further detailed information on the costs of the Scheme and information about the levy and how it was calculated will be included in the first annual report on the scheme which will be published on or before 30th November 2015.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Landfill: North East

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 10 November 2014 to Question 213275, how many of the seven landfill operators in the North East of England to which enforcement notices have been issued in the last 12 months have owned a landfill site in that region.

Dan Rogerson: The Environment Agency does not hold information on land ownership for landfill sites. Records on land ownership can be obtained from Land Registry.The landfill operators on which the seven enforcement notices were served and site details are:Caird Peckfield LtdPeckfield Landfill SiteRidge RoadMicklefieldLeedsWest YorkshireLS25 4DW   (four notices were served on this operator in relation to this site)   City Plant Ltd Gilberdyke Landfill Leatherdog Lane Newport East Yorkshire HU15 2QG   (two notices were served on this operator in relation to this site)   Bradley Park Waste Management Ltd Bradley Park Landfill Site Occupation Lane off Lower Quarry Road Huddersfield West Yorkshire HD2 1FN   (one notice was served on this operator in relation to this site)

Forests

Guy Opperman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what her policy is on long-term commercial forestry.

Dan Rogerson: We are actively implementing our Forestry and Woodlands Policy commitments to protect, improve and expand our forests. Specifically in relation to commercial forestry, this includes working with the sector’s Grown in Britain initiative to make planting new commercial woodland more economically attractive, and encouraging private sector investment through our Woodland Carbon Code. We are also looking at ways of reducing red tape affecting woodland planting and helping forestry businesses to become more competitive through the Rural Development Programme.

Dairy Farming: Northern Ireland

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has had discussions with representatives of the dairy industry in Northern Ireland on financial difficulties facing dairy farmers; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice: The Secretary of State chairs regular meetings with the Devolved Administrations on issues of mutual interest. The next meeting is currently being arranged and will provide an opportunity to discuss the dairy industry.Defra officials also maintain regular contact with their counterparts in the Devolved Administrations on a range of dairy issues.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) are owned by (a) each government department, (b) each local authority in England, (c) Natural England, (d) the Environment Agency, (e) the Forestry Commission (England), (f) the Crown Estate and (g) the Homes and Communities Agency; what condition each such SSSI's is in; for what proportion of those SSSI's she plans to achieve favourable condition by 2020; and what policy she applies to the disposal of land designated as a SSSI.

George Eustice: A table containing a list of SSSIs in which there is a tenure interest, the area within each SSSI held and the condition of that area,is attached. Separating ownership from other forms of tenure would be a major exercise that could only be carried out at a disproportionate cost.We are unable to separate out the relevant data for individual local authorities and do not hold any records for SSSI land held by the Homes and Communities Agency.As set out in Biodiversity 2020: A strategy for England’s wildlife and ecosystem services, our target is to have at least 50% of the total area of SSSI’s in favourable condition by 2020.Except in an emergency, it is an offence for anyone to intentionally or recklessly damage the special features of an SSSI unless they have obtained planning permission. The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that development should not normally be permitted if, either individually or in combination with other developments, it is likely to have an adverse effect on an SSSI. 



List of SSIs
(PDF Document, 474.33 KB)

Cattle: North Yorkshire

Miss Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the latest information is on cattle restrictions in the area north of Helmsley, North Yorkshire; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice: Following all bovine TB incidents in the Low Risk Area of England, which are infrequent and sporadic, rigorous disease controls are applied. These include herd movement restrictions, whole herd testing and radial testing of surrounding herds. Though burdensome for affected farmers, these controls are necessary if we are to prevent further spread of bovine TB into new areas, as is the case in Helmsley.

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether any (a) external contractors and (b) consultancy companies engaged by her Department have charged more than the initial price agreed for their services since May 2010.

Dan Rogerson: Controls in core Defra ensure that for any contract over £10k any changes in prices require prior formally agreed changes to contracts. Reviewing all contracts signed since 2010 to identify such changes to the cost of the contract would entail disproportionate costs.

Fisheries: Devon

Mr Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will take steps to provide financial assistance to the North Devon fishing community affected by the recent Appledore fishery closure; and if she will take steps to end the ray and skate quota in that area.

George Eustice: The Government has received strong representations from the Hon Member for Torridge and West Devon and asked the MMO to redouble its efforts to try to identify additional skates and rays quota through international swaps. While it has not proved possible to identify surplus quota, the fishery will re-open on 1 January. The Government will be resisting proposals for a cut in skate and ray quota in the Bristol channel at the December Fisheries Council to ensure that the Appledore Fishery maintains its fishing opportunities in 2015.

Home Office

Illegal Immigrants

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been prevented by UK Border Force officers from entering the UK illegally in the last year for which figures are available; and how many of those people have been prevented more than once from entering illegally.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 17 November 2014



Between April 2013 and March 2014, Border Force and other agencies detected around 18,000 clandestines at the juxtaposed ports in France, while a further 16,570 people were refused entry at UK ports. Please note, the figures on both clandestines and refusals represent the number of detections/refusals of illegal immigrants, not the number of individuals detected/refused, and so includes instances where the same person is detected on multiple occasions. Between April 2013 and March 2014, there were 420 recorded instances where a person has been refused entry more than once. Please note this is the number of multiple instances, not the number of individuals who have been refused. Data is not held on the corresponding figure for clandestines detected. This figure is derived from management information, subject to internal quality checks and may be subject to change.

SAFERjobs

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what funding her Department has made available to SAFERjobs in each of the last four calendar years.

Karen Bradley: Holding answer received on 17 November 2014



SAFER jobs is a non-profit, joint industry and law enforcement organisation set up to raise awareness and combat criminal activities that may be attempted on those seeking a job, or through the services provided by the recruitment industry. SAFER jobs has not received funding from the Home Office in the last four years.

Immigration Controls

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will review the case of Mr and Mrs Khanovych, application references Warsaw 208144 and 208145, to enable them to visit their daughter in the UK; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 20 November 2014



It is not the policy of the Home Office to comment on the detail of individual applications. I will write to the Hon Member.

Cybercrime

Charlie Elphicke: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to collate statistics relating to the total number of crimes involving online fraud.

Karen Bradley: Action Fraud is the UK’s national reporting point for fraud and financially-motivated cyber crime. The Office for National Statistics publishes quarterly data on the number of fraud offences recorded by Action Fraud. This includes a breakdown by the type of fraud, some of which have a clear online element. Action Fraud are looking at developing ways to better identify the subset of fraud offences that involve an online element. However, given the complex nature of some fraud cases this is difficult.The Office for National Statistics are also working to improve the measurement of fraud and cyber crime in the crime survey for England and Wales.

Cannabis

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions she has had with police forces on steps to tackle cannabis cultivation across the UK.

Lynne Featherstone: We work closely with the police to support the policing of illegal cannabis cultivation and meet them on a regular basis to discuss this issue. We have, for example, recently worked in partnership with the police and Crimestoppers on a ‘scratch and sniff’ cannabis card campaign, which ran for one month earlier this year. This involved distributing cards to the public to inform them about the signs to spot and the specific smell of cannabis when it is growing and encourage them to alert the police to suspicious activity. Hot spot areas were targeted by police forces throughout the UK. We are currently working with the police to asses the effectiveness of the campaign but initial reports suggest that this has led to an increase in police activity and built on the success of last year’s campaign.The police also work to improve their knowledge and understanding of the trade through activity-led intelligence gathering.As well as working with the police, we work with other partners with an interest in this area, such as energy companies and the property sector, to promote cooperation and the sharing of best practice in tackling cannabis cultivation across the UK.

Detention Centres

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will halt any expansion of the immigration detention estate until the report from the inquiry by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Refugees and the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Migration has been published.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 21 November 2014



Capacity of the detention estate is kept under rolling review. Decisions will continue to be made according to operational priorities.

Detention Centres

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the annual running costs of the immigration detention estate are.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 21 November 2014



In 2013/14 the total cost of running the Immigration Detention Estate was £164.4m. This includes all costs, including running costs, rent, depreciation and other costs, for all Immigration Removal Centres, Short Term Holding Facilities and amounts paid for spaces in the main prisons estate.

Travel Restrictions: Ethiopia

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Ethiopian nationals are on the UK travel exclusion list.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 21 November 2014



It is long-standing policy not to discuss information held on watch lists as to do so would not be in the interests of border and national security.

Travel Restrictions: Malawi

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Malawi nationals are on the UK travel exclusion list.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 21 November 2014



It is long-standing policy not to discuss information held on watch lists as to do so would not be in the interests of border and national security.

Proceeds of Crime

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many suspicious activity reports received in the year ending September 2013 were filed by (a) solicitors, (b) accountants, (c) banks and (d) each other category of profession for which records are kept.

Karen Bradley: The National Crime Agency’s Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) Annual Report 2013 contains, on page 8, a breakdown of reports made by sector. The report is available on the NCA website.

Proceeds of Crime

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many of the suspicious activity reports received in the year ending September 2013 relating to Politically Exposed Persons required consent before being filed.

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many suspicious activity reports received in the year ending September 2013 related to Politically Exposed Persons.

Karen Bradley: Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs), including those requiring consent, relating to Politically Exposed Persons are included in the overall figures for SARs and consent SARs published in the NCA’s Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) Annual Report 2013.

Proceeds of Crime

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the written evidence from the Crown Prosecution Service, Home Office and National Crime Agency to the Committee of Public Accounts, published in its forty-ninth report of 2013-14, on Confiscation Orders, HC 942, ev24, how many of the suspicious activity reports received in the year ending September 2013 required consent to be filed.

Karen Bradley: 14,103 consent Suspicious Activity Reports were received in the year ending September 2013. These figures are published in the National Crime Agency’s Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) Annual Report 2013.

Proceeds of Crime

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many suspicious activity reports received in the year ending September 2013 that related to Politically Exposed Persons and required consent were filed by (a) solicitors, (b) accountants, (c) banks and (d) each other category of profession for which records are kept.

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many suspicious activity reports received in the year ending September 2013 that related to Politically Exposed Persons were filed by (a) solicitors, (b) accountants, (c) banks and (d) each other category of profession for which records are kept.

Karen Bradley: Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs), including those requiring consent, relating to Politically Exposed Persons are included in the overall figures for SARs and consent SARs published in the NCA’s Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) Annual Report 2013.

National Crime Agency: Northern Ireland

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions she has had with hon. Members from Sinn Fein and the SDLP on the National Crime Agency in Northern Ireland.

Karen Bradley: The Government continues to fully support the Northern Ireland Justice Minister, who is leading discussions with the parties, to try to secure full operating powers for the National Crime Agency in Northern Ireland. Home Office Ministers have regular discussions with Ministerial colleagues and others. As was the case with previous administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings. The Director General of the National Crime Agency has also given his full support to these negotiations and has met with some of the political partiesand appeared before the Northern Ireland Policing Board. We are committed to resolving this so that the people and communities of Northern Ireland can benefit from the full range of the National Crime Agency’s capabilities, like the rest of the United Kingdom.

Staff

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many staff in her Department were employed in non-frontline roles in each of the last five years.

Karen Bradley: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Slavery

Jason McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, by what process she plans that businesses will report exploitation in their supply chains as a result of the Modern Slavery Bill.

Karen Bradley: Businesses required to comply with the transparency in supply chains provision, now included in the Modern Slavery Bill, will be required to publish their annual slavery and trafficking statement on their website. They must also include a link to the slavery and human trafficking statement in a prominent place on their website’s homepage. Where a business uncovers slavery or trafficking in their supply chains they will be encouraged to report their concerns or findings to the relevant authorities in that jurisdiction. The statutory guidance to support businesses in understanding what kinds of information they may wish to include in any slavery and trafficking statement may include guidance on reporting concerns.

Offences against Children

Mr Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people under the age of 16 in each county were victims of sexual offences in the last year for which figures are available.

Lynne Featherstone: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Offences against Children

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many cases of sexual abuse against children and young people have been reported to police in each of the last five years.

Lynne Featherstone: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

British Nationality: Assessments

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the Life in the UK test reflects contemporary Britain.

James Brokenshire: The Life in the UK test was significantly revised in March 2013 to place the emphasis on British history, culture and democracy. It is intended to help those seeking to live permanently in the UK to gain a basic understanding of the democratic principles underlying British society, and of aspects of British culture and traditions.

Entry Clearances: Iraq

Mr David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress her Department has made on issuing visas to the 17 residents of Camp Liberty, Iraq, whose admission to the UK has been agreed in principle by the Government.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Scotland Office

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether any (a) external contractors and (b) consultancy companies engaged by his Department have charged more than the initial price agreed for their services since May 2010.

David Mundell: On no occasion has the Scotland Office been charged more by external contractors or consultancy companies we engaged than the initial price agreed for their services since May 2010.

HM Treasury

Tax Avoidance: Multinational Companies

Mark Durkan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his policy is on the Base Erosion and Profit Sharing process; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Gauke: The UK is at the forefront of multilateral action through the G20 and OECD to tackle the issue of tax avoidance by multinational enterprise. The UK used its Presidency of the G8 to successfully build international support for this work.   Work is well underway at the OECD, in the form of the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project. The first phase of the BEPS project is now complete, with participants reaching agreement on seven reports which have been produced by the OECD and endorsed by G20 Finance Ministers at their Summit in Cairns 20-21 September.   Of these outputs, this government has already taken domestic action towards implementation. In September 2014 the UK announced it would be the first of 44 countries to formally commit to implementing the newly agreed BEPS output of a country-by-country reporting template.   Subsequently, in October 2014 the UK announced its commitment to publish a consultation on the BEPs project’s 2014 output to neutralise hybrid mismatches - a tax avoidance technique used by multinationals to exploit differences between countries’ tax rules to avoid paying tax in either country, or to obtain more tax relief against profits than they are entitled to. The BEPS project is due to finish by December 2015. In order to achieve success by creating effective recommendations for the remaining Actions, in line with the Action Plan, the collaboration and momentum of the process must continue.   As set out in the publication at Budget 14, one of the key principles underpinning the UK’s approach to the BEPS project is that the solutions should be consistent with the Government’s wish to promote UK growth and competitiveness.   Whilst the project will not be completed until the end of 2015, if we can achieve our goals, we will succeed in fundamentally changing the international tax landscape, and shift the balance of the rules in favour of tax authorities, enabling us to clamp down on those who refuse to play by the rules.

Taxation: Developing Countries

Mark Durkan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will pilot a scheme on automatic information exchange with a developing country.

Mark Durkan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how he plans to respond to the OECD's proposals on involvement of low income countries in development of the automatic exchange of tax payer information.

Mr David Gauke: As made clear during our G8 Presidency, we are committed to helping developing countries benefit from increased tax transparency including the new global standard of automatic exchange of information. Since G20 Finance Ministers welcomed the Global Forum’s Roadmap in September, my officials and their counterparts in DfID and HMRC have engaged in discussions with a number of developing countries on the possibility of piloting implementation of the new global standard. These discussions are ongoing.

Welfare Tax Credits

Sammy Wilson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much was paid out in tax credits in 2013-14.

Priti Patel: Expenditure figures of Tax Credits for 2013-14 are available on the HM Revenue and Customs receipts publication https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/364582/20141015_Sepmonthlyreceipts.xls.

Historic Buildings: Tax Allowances

Helen Goodman: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the annual cost of removing the cap on sideways loss relief for historic house businesses.

Mr David Gauke: An estimate is not available, but the Government keeps all tax policies under review.

Tax Avoidance: Luxembourg

Paul Flynn: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to investigate the offshoring by British based companies to registered addresses in Luxembourg for the purposes of reducing tax paid in the UK.

Mr David Gauke: This Government is already aware of this and other practices, and has been relentless in its crackdown on tax avoidance, and has taken a range of action to prevent avoidance at the outset, and to detect and counter it effectively where it persists.   The UK is working with the OECD Forum on Harmful Tax Practices (FHTP), where it was an agreement was reached last May requiring the disclosure of information about tax rulings provided by tax authorities to companies to other countries affected by these, and that greater transparency in relation to these rulings was required. A framework for this was agreed that will require tax authorities to disclose these rulings to other tax authorities within 3 months. Countries will also be required to report annually to the OECD FHTP on the number of rulings exchanged and with which countries. Through these initiatives we will be able to gather the information relevant to tax avoidance schemes.   In addition, the UK is working with the G20, OECD and other countries to take forward the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project. Phase one of the BEPS project is now complete, with participants reaching agreement on seven reports which have been produced by the OECD and put to G20 Finance Ministers. The seven 2014 outputs represent substantial progress reflecting the work of the technical working groups as well as the input received from business, civil society organisations and other stakeholders.

Income Tax

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people have paid less tax as a result of the recent reduction in the top rate of tax.

Mr David Gauke: Estimates of the number of additional rate income tax payers are published in HMRC’s tax statistics, table 2.1. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/306826/Table_2.1.pdf   As set out at Budget 2013, the cost of reducing the additional rate of income tax to 45 per cent from 50 per cent is estimated at around £100m per year. The costing’s account for substantial behavioral responses associated with changes in top marginal tax rates and have been verified by the independent Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR).   The Government believes it is neither efficient nor fair to maintain a tax rate that is not effective at raising revenue from high earners and risks damaging growth.

Foreign Investment in UK

Adam Afriyie: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he has taken to encourage more foreign direct investment in UK companies.

Andrea Leadsom: In 2013-14 the UK attracted 1,773 foreign direct investment projects, giving a total stock of £1.6 trillion of such investments - more than any other country apart from the USA. During this Parliament the Government has taken action to make the UK a more attractive location to run a business including reducing corporation tax so that it will reach 20% next year – the lowest in the G20 - and investing in skills, science and infrastructure. The Government has also increased resources at UK Trade and Investment including for example establishing private sector-led teams in the Gulf, Central Europe, and South America dedicated to attracting inward investment into the UK.

Foreign Exchange

Paul Flynn: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will takes steps to ensure that banks fined by the Financial Conduct Authority for improper trading on the FOREX exchange do not recover the fines from increased bank charges to customers of retail high street branches.

Paul Flynn: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Serious Fraud Office about its investigation into the activities in foreign exchange dealing of bankers.

Andrea Leadsom: The Director of the Serious Fraud Office opened a criminal investigation into allegations of fraudulent conduct in the foreign exchange market in July 2014. The Government does not comment on ongoing investigations, so as not to prejudice these inquiries in any way.

Smuggling: Tobacco

Catherine McKinnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 2.144 of the Budget report 2014, when he plans to consult on measures to strengthen the Government's response to tobacco smuggling and improve anti-forestalling controls.

Priti Patel: On 20 October this year, HMRC published on GOV.UK a consultation document on measures to control the holding and movement of raw tobacco in order to reduce the risk of evasion of excise duty. The consultation closes on 30 January.   On 23 June, HMRC launched an informal consultation on forestalling restrictions, which closed on 4 August. The consultation was targeted on businesses with a direct interest in forestalling controls and an invitation for other businesses to contribute was published on GOV.UK.

Wholesale Trade: Alcoholic Drinks

Catherine McKinnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 2.140, page 75, of the Budget Report 2014, HC1104, what progress he has made on (a) introducing a registration scheme for alcohol wholesalers by 2016 and (b) requiring traders to take reasonable steps to ensure their customers are legitimate by the end of 2014.

Catherine McKinnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 2.140, page 75, of the Budget Report 2014, HC1104, whether he expects the registration scheme for alcohol wholesalers to take effect by 2016; and whether he plans to introduce legislative proposals for that scheme in the 2015 Finance Bill.

Catherine McKinnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to pages 31 to 36 of HM Revenue and Customs' publication Measuring tax gaps 2014 edition, October 2014, what steps he has taken to reduce the alcohol tax gap since 2012-13.

Priti Patel: The Government is committed to taking decisive action to address alcohol fraud. A number of steps have been taken to reduce tax evasion in this area, including significant investment in enforcement and introduction of a programme of new measures outlined in “Alcohol Fraud: Next Steps” published by the Government in January 2014.   We announced at Autumn Statement 2013 that the Government intends to introduce a registration scheme for alcohol wholesalers, to reduce the prevalence of alcohol fraud in the wholesale and retail sectors. Since then HMRC has consulted businesses on the operation of a register, and preparations are now advanced to introduce this scheme from the autumn of 2015. The Government will introduce legislative proposals for this scheme at the earliest opportunity.   The Government introduced a new measure on 1 November 2014 requiring business to undertake reasonable due diligence on their supply-chains and have robust procedures to reduce risks of trading in illicit goods. This currently applies to businesses in the alcohol sector that already hold other forms of excise approval with HMRC, and consideration is being given to applying this to other sectors such as alcohol wholesalers.   The Joint Alcohol Anti-Fraud Taskforce (JAAT) was also launched in January 2014. This brings together government agencies and the drinks industry in a common objective of developing new ways to reduce alcohol fraud. The taskforce is exploring new technologies, information sharing and more effective collaboration.   All these measures, in combination with the ongoing enforcement strategy which the Government introduced in 2010-11, are significant steps aimed at reducing the tax gap due to alcohol fraud which remains unacceptably high.

Charities: Bank Services

Charlotte Leslie: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will have discussions with representatives of the banking sector on the possibility of instituting a system whereby registered charities would be entitled to preferential interest rates on (a) borrowing and (b) investments.

Andrea Leadsom: Charities play an important role in our society, enabling people to play an active role in their community. This is why the Government supports charities through a range of reliefs and exemptions worth over £4 billion a year. However, the Government recognises that decisions about what financial products are offered to specific businesses remain commercial decisions for banks and building societies.

Department for Energy and Climate Change

Energy: Disconnections

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate he has made of the number of domestic customers disconnected by their energy supplier in (a) 2013 and (b) 2014.

Matthew Hancock: Ofgem monitors and publishes information about disconnections of domestic electricity and gas supplies in its Domestic Supplies’ Obligations Annual Reports:http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Sustainability/SocAction/Monitoring/SoObMonitor/Pages/SocObMonitor.aspx.Up the end of Q2 of 2013, 234 domestic electricity and 38 gas customer supplies were disconnected due to debt in 2013. Data for the remainder of the year and 2014 is not available.

Green Deal Scheme

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many households in each council tax band have had (a) new, (b) pending and (c) live Green Deal plans.

Amber Rudd: The Department reports the number of (a) new, (b) pending and (c) live Green Deal Plans in unique properties, in Table 3 of the monthly official statistics publication:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/green-deal-and-energy-company-obligation-eco-statistics#monthly-statisticsA breakdown of Green Deal Plans in each council tax band is not held centrally.

Electricity

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Annual Energy Statement of 6 November 2014, Official Report, column 984, what the evidential basis was for the statement that total electricity investment was high between 2000 and 2010.

Matthew Hancock: No such statement was made by my rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State in the Annual Energy Statement of 6 November 2014, Official Report, Column 984.

Green Deal Scheme

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many households in each (a) parliamentary constituency, (b) local authority and (c) region have had (i) new, (ii) pending and (iii) live Green Deal plans.

Amber Rudd: The Department reports the number of 'live' Green Deal Plans (with measures installed) by Region, up to 30th June 2014 in Table 1.7 of the quarterly official statistics publication. We cannot break this down to a lower geographic level at present for confidentiality reasons:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/green-deal-energy-company-obligation-eco-and-insulation-levels-in-great-britain-quarterly-report-to-june-2014The quarterly official statistic series presents statistics on energy efficiency installation and, once these Plans have had measures installed (i.e. ‘live’ Plans), they will be included in Table 1.7 in future updates.



Green Deal, ECO, Insulation Stats up to Jun 2014
(PDF Document, 1.3 MB)

Energy Companies Obligation

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many households in each (a) parliamentary constituency, (b) local authority and (c) region have had measures installed under the Energy Companies Obligation.

Amber Rudd: The Department has published the provisional number of ECO measures by region, by administrative area, and by Parliamentary Constituency, up to 30th June 2014 in the latest quarterly official statistics publication (Tables 1.11, 1.11a, 1.11b):https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/green-deal-energy-company-obligation-eco-and-insulation-levels-in-great-britain-quarterly-report-to-june-2014.



Green Deal, ECO & Insulation Stats up to June 2014
(PDF Document, 1.3 MB)

Renewable Energy: Cooperatives

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment he has made of the effect of recent decisions by the Financial Conduct Authority on the registration of new renewable energy cooperatives on his policy of increasing the number of community energy groups and energy cooperatives; how many applications for new energy cooperatives have been (a) rejected and (b) accepted in 2014; and if he will make a statement.

Matthew Hancock: The Government is committed to supporting the growth of the community energy sector. DECC is working with community energy stakeholders and the FCA to ensure the right balance is struck between consumer/ investor protection and realising the full potential of community energy.The FCA has registered 220 co-operatives and community benefit societies (of all types of business, not just community energy projects) as of 19 November this year. It has rejected approximately 50 co-operatives and community benefit society applications. The FCA does not keep details of the specific purpose of applicant co-operatives and community benefit societies.

Energy: Billing

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate he has made of the number of customers in debt to their energy supplier for (a) electricity and (b) gas in each of the last 10 years.

Matthew Hancock: Ofgem monitors and publishes information about domestic customers repaying debt for their gas and electricity supplies in its Social Obligations Annual Reports:https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/about-us/how-we-work/working-consumers/supplier-performance-social-obligations.The table below shows the number of domestic customers repaying debt through an agreed repayment arrangement with their energy supplier for 2003 to 2012. Data for 2013 is not yet available.(millions) 2003200420052006200720082009201020112012Electricity1.21.21.21.21.31.11.00.90.80.9Gas1.21.01.00.80.80.90.70.70.70.8

Electricity Generation

Mr Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many staff in his Department are working on electricity market reform; and how many such staff are chartered engineers.

Amber Rudd: There are currently 85 (full time equivalent) civil servants working in the Electricity Market Reform directorate.The Department of Energy and Climate Change does not record centrally whether any of our employees are Chartered Engineers and we are therefore unable to answer this question without incurring disproportionate costs.

Engineers

Mr Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many chartered engineers are employed by his Department.

Amber Rudd: The Department of Energy and Climate Change does not record centrally whether any of our employees are Chartered Engineers and we are therefore unable to answer this question without incurring disproportionate costs.

Electricity Generation

Mr Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether the forthcoming capacity auctions in December 2014 will seek to procure capacity suitable for providing balancing supply to match short-term fluctuations in the balance between demand and non-despatchable supply.

Matthew Hancock: The forthcoming capacity auction will secure 48.6GW of capacity, securing around 80% of the capacity we need four years in advance, to ensure high levels of security of supply, with the rest being secured from an auction one year ahead of delivery and support through other measures.The auction is technology neutral and is open to generators (new and existing plants) and demand side response providers. Those successful in the auction will be required to generate electricity, or reduce demand, at times of system stress or face financial penalties.It is National Grid’s responsibility to procure enough operating reserve as might be required for the real-time balancing of the system, which is a vital part of ensuring security of electricity supply. The Capacity Market will operate alongside the energy market, which is being further improved by Ofgem to incentivise providers to provide capacity in response to short-term fluctuations in supply and demand.

Energy: Meters

Mr Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many times the (a) start and (b) completion dates of the roll-out of smart meters have been changed.

Matthew Hancock: The Smart Metering Programme in Great Britain was launched in December 2009, with the intention of completing the roll out of smart meters to all homes by 2020. The roll-out has started. At the end of June 2014 around 900,000 meters were in operation under the Programme. The completion dates of the roll-out of smart meters have been changed as follows: a) In March 2011, the Government stated in the Ofgem/ DECC Response to the Prospectus Consultation that suppliers would be required to complete the roll-out of smart meters in 2019 and confirmed in April 2012 that the roll-out should be completed by 31 December 2019, rather than 2020. b) In May 2013, following a review of the Smart Metering Programme, the Government announced that it had decided to move the completion date for the mass roll-out from end 2019 to end 2020.

Energy Companies Obligation

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many households in each council tax band have had measures installed under the Energy Companies Obligation.

Amber Rudd: The number of households in each council tax band that have had measures installed under the Energy Companies Obligation is not held centrally.

Energy: Prices

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether his Department has made an estimate of the (a) number of energy suppliers which require an upfront payment in order to switch to them and (b) cost of such payments.

Matthew Hancock: The decision to pass on any costs incurred while switching a customer’s supply is a commercial decision for the company. Energy suppliers do not require an upfront payment from customers on a credit meter who are switching to them. Some suppliers will charge if an incoming customer wants to switch from a prepayment meter to a credit meter. The following table shows the energy supply companies that do make such charges and the level of that charge. These suppliers may waive charges for vulnerable consumers or in certain circumstances.Supplier Charge for gas PPM Charge for electricity PPM Npower£60£60Scottish Power£62.90£45.91SSE£52.00£52.00Co-op£69.02£66.15Ebico£52.00£52.00

Renewable Energy

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Oral Answer of 6 November 2014, Official Report, column 946, on energy and climate policies, what the evidential basis was for the statement that renewable electricity investment has more than doubled since May 2010.

Matthew Hancock: I refer the rt. hon. Member to answer given to her on 12 May 2014, Official Report, Column 344-5W, which confirmed that a copy of the Bloomberg New Energy Finance analysis of new investment in UK renewable electricity was placed in the Libraries of both Houses. This analysis shows that average annual investment in renewables has more than doubled in this Parliament, compared with the previous one.

Biofuels

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if he will estimate the amount of carbon emitted to the UK atmosphere by subsidised generation of (a) heat by biomass boilers and (b) electricity by biomass power stations in the last 30 years.

Amber Rudd: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether any (a) external contractors and (b) consultancy companies engaged by his Department have charged more than the initial price agreed for their services since May 2010.

Amber Rudd: This information is not held centrally because procurement and contract management responsibility is devolved to policy teams in DECC. Changes of price often occur when there is need for additional services. This involves negotiation will the contractor and is documented as a contract variation. The price for consultancy services is usually based upon agreed rates following supplier selection via competitive tender of the Crown Commercial Services ConsultancyOne framework. The price may change according to many variables depending on the nature of the work and circumstances.

Electricity Generation

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what limits he is setting on capacity market payments made through the Levy Control Framework.

Matthew Hancock: The first payment for the main Capacity Market scheme will be made in 2018 – although payments under the transitional arrangements will commence in 2016. Updated Capacity Market budgets will be set for each capacity year following the outcome of the auctions for that year. Each auction will have a price cap to limit payments and protect consumers. The price cap for the first auction to be held in December 2014 is £75/kW.

Hinkley Point C Power Station

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what discussions he has had with (a) Saudi authorities and (b) EDF Energy on the possibility of Saudi Arabian investment in the Hinkley Point C nuclear power project.

Matthew Hancock: My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State has had no discussions with the Saudi authorities or EDF Energy on the possibility of Saudi Arabian investment in the Hinkley Point C nuclear power project.

Cabinet Office

Young People

John Healey: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) 16, (b) 17 and (c) 18 year olds likely to be resident in England in each of the next 10 years.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - 17 and 18 year Old Resident
(PDF Document, 101.23 KB)

Local Government: Procurement

Steve McCabe: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what discussions he has had on changes to local authority commissioning processes as a consequence of the UK's adoption of the 2014 EU Procurement Directives.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what discussions he has had on public services being granted exemptions from the 2014 EU Procurement Directives.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that procurement regulations do not increase the administrative burden of (a) local authorities seeking to procure education services and (b) providers seeking to tender for them.

Mr Francis Maude: During the negotiations on the Directives, and subsequently during the transposition process, we have held discussions with the Local Government Association. Local authorities have also received face-to-face training on the new rules, and have responded to the Government’s recent public consultation on the draft regulations implementing the Directives.The new Directives will allow local authorities to procure faster, with less red tape.It is up to individual contracting authorities to reflect the 2014 EU Procurement Directives in their own processes and procedures.The EU Public Procurement Directive (2014) sets out the exemptions and exclusions that apply. It is up to individual contracting authorities to decide whether or not to avail themselves of the exemptions for any particular procurement.The new EU Procurement Directives support UK Government priorities of economic growth and deficit reduction by making the public procurement process faster, less costly, and more effective for business and procurers alike.Throughout the negotiations last year, the UK Government was determined to remove outdated and superfluous constraints and introduce many new reforms to streamline and modernise public procurement.The Regulations transposing the new Directive will also implement recommendations made by Lord Young of Graffham, which will ensure a simple and consistent approach to procurement across all public sector authorities so that small businesses and voluntary sector businesses can gain better and more direct access to the public sector market.

Public Appointments

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what criteria the Government uses to determine whether public appointments should be regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments.

Mr Francis Maude: Public appointments that are subject to regulation by the Commissioner for Public Appointments are governed by legislation - the Public Appointments Order in Council 2014. This lists the public bodies that fall within the Commissioner’s remit and is now updated annually.The document is available to view here;https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/326994/20140609_Order_in_Council_for_Privy_Council.pdf

Fire Services: Industrial Disputes

Joan Walley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when the recent strike by members of the FBU was discussed by COBRA; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Francis Maude: It has been the practice of successive Governments not to give specific information on the content of Cabinet Committee and other Ministerial meetings.

Vandalism

Mr David Ruffley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many instances of vandalism were reported in each police force area in England and Wales in each year since 2005.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - Vandalism
(PDF Document, 105.46 KB)




Excel Sheet for Member
(Excel SpreadSheet, 42 KB)

Employment: Older People

Stephen Timms: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the rate of (a) employment and (b) unemployment is for people aged (i) 50, (ii) 51, (iii) 52, (iv) 53, (v) 54, (vi) 55, (vii) 56, (viii) 57, (ix) 58, (x) 59, (xi) 60, (xii) 61, (xiii) 62, (xiv) 63, (xv) 64 and (xvi) 65.

Mr Rob Wilson: The Cabinet Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Cancer

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the rate of cancer survival in hospitals is in (a) Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust and (b) England.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - Cancer Rate
(PDF Document, 199.66 KB)

Department for Culture Media and Sport

Broadband: Bedfordshire

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he expects superfast broadband to reach the coverage target of 95 per cent in North East Bedfordshire.

Mr Edward Vaizey: This Government is committed to national access to superfast broadband and anticipates that at least 95% premises in the Bedfordshire and Milton Keynes project will be able to access superfast broadband by December 2017.

Broadband

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many different companies tendered for the 47 contracts to deliver superfast broadband under phases one and two of the Superfast Broadband programme.

Mr Edward Vaizey: In Phase 1 of the Superfast Broadband Programme there are 44 contracts between Local Bodies and providers. 33 of these used the Broadband Delivery Framework. Nine suppliers started the competitive dialogue tender process for the Framework and three submitted final tenders. Two of these tenders were accepted. Of these, only one supplier has submitted bids for individual projects.   For the remaining 11 local projects an OJEU procurement was used by the Local Bodies. Across the 11 projects a total of 19 different suppliers were invited to submit bids. Four different suppliers submitted ITT responses at the end of the procurement processes.   All three contracts so far signed for Phase 2 of the programme have used the Broadband Delivery Framework that was established as part of Phase 1.

Football

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what support his Department gives to grassroots football; and how much government investment there has been in football in Harlow constituency.

Mrs Helen Grant: This Government is committed to supporting football at a grassroots level. I am pleased that Sport England is investing over £160 million to get more people playing grassroots football across England. This includes a £120m investment into facilities, £6m into FA skills and £4.5m into the Premier League Kicks programme. Sport England is also investing £28.4 million in the Football Association’s Whole Sport Plan, which goes directly into participation projects and facilities in all parts of England. Sport England does not break down Whole Sport Plan funding by constituency.

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether any (a) external contractors and (b) consultancy companies engaged by his Department have charged more than the initial price agreed for their services since May 2010.

Mrs Helen Grant: We have not identified cases of external contractors or consultancy companies charging more than the initial price agreed for their services since May 2010.

Sports: Investment

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent steps his Department has taken to encourage local stakeholders to invest in sport.

Mrs Helen Grant: This Government is committed to the sporting industry. I am pleased that Sport England always seeks to leverage in support from local stakeholders where possible. To encourage local investment in sport, Sport England has produced a range of tools which not only demonstrate the economic and social value of sport for local communities, but also the health benefits of physical activity. This data and insight, which shows that sport offers a good return on investment for local communities, is shared with local authorities and other potential investors. Sport England also encourages applicants to its National Lottery award programmes to seek matched funding from local stakeholders such as local authorities, educational institutions, local businesses and sports clubs.

Broadband: Hertfordshire

Sir Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the speed of delivery of superfast broadband to rural areas in East Hertfordshire.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire superfast broadband project has already enabled 14,140 premises to receive fibre broadband and is on track to deliver 91.1% superfast coverage by March 2016. A further £6.63m has been allocated for Phase 2 of the project to extend superfast coverage to up to 96.6% of premises in Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire by December 2017.

Arts: Finance

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent estimate he has made of the amount of arts funding per head spent in (a) London and (b) the North-West; and what discussions he has had with arts organisations on ensuring balance in spending between those regions.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The amount of funding per head from Arts Council England for 2013/14 was £28.17 for London and £10.11 per head in the North West. The figure for London includes the London-based national arts organisations. ACE are working with organisations within the North West area to increase the number of applications for funding in the future.

Tourism: Floods

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much of the Tourism Industry Fund for Businesses in flood affected parts of England has been (a) allocated to local authorities and (b) received by businesses.

Mrs Helen Grant: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given on 11 Jun 2014 Official Report, col 143W.

Wales Office

EU External Trade: USA

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what representations he has received from the Welsh Government on exemption of the Welsh National Health Service from negotiations on the proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what representations he has received from the Welsh Government on negotiations on the proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.

Stephen Crabb: All aspects of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership were discussed at the Joint Ministerial Committee (Europe) on 13 October 2014, which the Welsh Government Minister for Finance attended.

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, whether any (a) external contractors and (b) consultancy companies engaged by his Department have charged more than the initial price agreed for their services since May 2010.

Alun Cairns: No external contractors or consultancy companies engaged by the Wales Office since May 2010 have charged more than the initial price agreed for their services.

Deputy Prime Minister

Local Enterprise Partnerships: North East

Guy Opperman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what discussions he has had with North East Local Enterprise Partnership on the timing and size of the second phase of Local Growth Deals.

Greg Clark: The Government has a long standing relationship with the North East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) which has seen the successful negotiation of £289.3m to support economic growth in the first round of Growth Deals announced in July 2014. The Government is engaged in on-going dialogue with all LEPs about the shape of the next round of Growth Deals, including the North East LEP.

Electoral Register: Northamptonshire

Mr Peter Bone: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, if he will investigate whether EU citizens are being wrongly recorded on the electoral roll as being able to vote in all elections in (a) Wellingborough, (b) Kettering and (c) Corby.

Mr Sam Gyimah: We are not aware of any problem of EU nationals incorrectly being registered to vote in UK Parliamentary elections in Corby, Kettering or Wellingborough.The published electoral register is available for inspection by any person who wishes to do so. Where someone believes that an entry on the register is incorrect or that the franchise for that entry has been determined incorrectly they may make an objection to that entry to the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO).If the ERO has any concerns about an entry on the register, they may undertake a review of the application under the rules of the Representation of the People Act 1983 and The Representation of the People (England and Wales) Regulations 2001.

Electoral Register: EU Nationals

Mr Peter Bone: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, how many EU citizens are on the electoral roll and noted as not being able to vote in general elections in (a) Wellingborough, (b) Kettering, (c) Corby and (d) England.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The number of EU citizens registered to vote in local and EU parliamentary elections (as at 1 October 2014) for Corby, Kettering and Wellingborough are in the below table. The figure for England was at 17 February 2014. None of these electors are able to vote in a UK General Election. Constituency/LocalityNumber of EU electors registered to voteCorby Borough Council3,857Kettering Borough Council2,091Wellingborough Borough Council2,769England1,410,710

Electoral Register: EU Nationals

Mr Peter Bone: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, how many EU citizens of voting age are living in (a) Wellingborough, (b) Kettering, (c) Corby and (d) England.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Government does not hold information on the exact number of EU nationals of voting age living in Corby, Kettering, Wellingborough or England. This is because there are citizens who are eligible to vote but do not register to do so.

Electoral Register: EU Nationals

Mr Peter Bone: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what recent estimate he has made of the number of EU citizens in (a) Wellingborough, (b) Kettering, (c) Corby and (d) England who are on the electoral roll but incorrectly designated as being able to vote in all elections.

Mr Sam Gyimah: EU citizens are only able to vote in local elections and European Parliamentary elections. Their entry on the electoral register has special marks - a “G” mark to indicate that they are registered to vote in local elections and a “K” mark once they have completed a declaration that states they wish to vote in EU parliamentary elections in the United Kingdom.

Commission On the Consequences of Devolution for the House of Commons

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, whether the Government plans to publish its response to the McKay Commission report; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Government is taking steps to examine all constitutional issues arising from further devolution, including ‘the English question’. A wide range of options have been put forward by the McKay Commission and other interested parties. The Devolution Cabinet Committee is looking at these issues and the Government will report on progress in due course.

Department of Health

Health Services: Impact Assessments

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to minimise the cost of public sector innovation impact assessments related to the provision of healthcare services.

George Freeman: It is important that impact assessments are carried out on new approaches to healthcare to ensure the potential impacts and the costs and benefits are properly considered. Departments are expected to take a proportionate approach to the analysis required for impact assessments and the Department aims to do this in all cases.   We are committed to ensuring that the National Health Service becomes one of the best organisations in the world to deliver innovations to patient care faster, removing the barriers that prevent innovation and creating a climate where clinical pioneers have the freedom to make breakthroughs in treatment.

Pregnant Women: Screening

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what measures are in place to ensure high uptake of foetal abnormality tests in the first trimester of pregnancy; and if he will make a statement.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The NHS Fetal Anomaly Screening Programme (FASP) offers screening to all pregnant women in England in the first trimester to assess the risk of the baby being born with Down’s syndrome or a number of fetal anomalies (structural abnormalities with how the fetus has developed).   FASP is committed to supporting individual informed choice and has no measures in place to increase the uptake of screening for fetal anomaly. Through the development of high quality educational resources and information, the programme supports health professionals in being able to discuss screening choices with women and their partners so that they can decide, based on their own circumstances, whether or not screening is right for them.   The decision to have a screening test is always a personal choice and one which can only be made by the woman. Some women may choose not to be screened at all, or only for certain conditions and it is important that this choice is respected.

Diabetes

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how health and wellbeing boards monitor levels of diabetes awareness.

Norman Lamb: Health and Wellbeing Boards are responsible for the development of Joint Strategic Needs Assessments (JSNA) to identify the current and future health and wellbeing needs of the local population. This may include an analysis of the prevalence, impact and levels of awareness of diabetes among the local population.   Boards also have a duty to engage the public in their work, and an important role to involve local communities in decision making. Boards therefore have considerable flexibility to work with local community and voluntary groups, and with the public directly to gather views and assess awareness around specific issues such as diabetes.   However, the Department has not highlighted any particular issue over another for attention by Boards in their JSNA or wider engagement work, as this would risk undermining the importance of Boards being locally-owned and responding to the needs of their local populations.

Dementia: East of England

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what support the NHS provides to people with dementia and their carers in the East of England.

Norman Lamb: Dementia is a key priority for this Government and we are committed to ensuring people with dementia and their carers receive the best possible care in all care settings. In 2012 the Government launched the first ever Prime Minister’s Challenge on dementia to increase diagnosis rates, raise awareness and understanding and double funding for research in dementia by 2015.   The provision of local dementia services is a matter for the local National Health Service. NHS England advises that an East of England Strategic Clinical Network for Mental Health, Dementia, Neurological Conditions, Learning Disability and Autism (SCN) was established in April 2013 to enable and support service and quality improvements, and better patient outcomes. In addition, the Strategic Dementia Advisory Group, established in September 2013, facilitates and oversees the work of the SCN and is an expert body which provides advice and peer support to partners in dementia care across the East of England.   My hon. Friend may wish to contact NHS England for further information on support available for dementia patients and their carers in the East of England.

Pneumococcal Disease: Vaccination

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2014 to Question 213785, under what circumstances additional modelling would be required by the pneumococcal disease sub-committee of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation.

Jane Ellison: Modelling conducted by Public Health England (PHE) will use information that includes the latest epidemiological data on pneumococcal disease in the United Kingdom. PHE will report its findings to the Pneumococcal Sub-committee. In addition to reports received from PHE, the Sub-committee will consider information including, but not limited to, reports provided by vaccine manufacturers. The Pneumococcal Sub-committee may request revised or additional modelling if the additional evidence considered suggests that there might be a substantial impact on the results of the original modelling conducted by PHE.

Accident and Emergency Departments

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average waiting time in A&E departments has been (a) nationwide, (b) in the East of England and (c) in the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow in each of the last 10 years.

Jane Ellison: Weekly situation reports collected by NHS England are the official source of information about accident and emergency waiting times. These measure the number of patients admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours of arrival at an accident and emergency department, but do not provide information on average waiting times.   Information is available in hospital episode statistics from 2007-08 on average waiting times to assessment, treatment and departure in accident and emergency departments, and is shown in the following tables. The duration to departure times are most closely aligned to the official information.   Table 1: Mean and median duration to assessment in minutes for attendances at accident and emergency departments, 2007-08 to 2012-13EnglandEast of England Strategic Health AuthorityThe Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS TrustYearMeanMedianMeanMedianMeanMedian2007-0852748824162008-0961735422142009-1077937520132010-11641049423152011-123382351782012-13308175138   Table 2: Mean and median duration to treatment in minutes for attendances at accident and emergency departments, 2007-08 to 2012-13EnglandEast of England Strategic Health AuthorityThe Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS TrustYearMeanMedianMeanMedianMeanMedian2007-089049745590762008-0911655815593782009-1010255745486732010-119858826190742011-127552756056362012-13745375606148   Table 3: Mean and median duration to departure in minutes for attendances at accident and emergency departments, 2007-08 to 2012-13EnglandEast of England Strategic Health AuthorityThe Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS TrustYearMeanMedianMeanMedianMeanMedian2007-081301121261151261172008-091361171331231341352009-101351221371301421452010-111461301451371481502011-121381251451381661612012-13141128146138150143   Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre.   Notes: 1. HES for accident and emergency (A&E) were first collected for 2007-08. 2. The recording of duration in HES A&E is not mandatory, and this may have particularly affected the quality of recorded durations to assessment and treatment. 3. Information relates to all types of accident and emergency departments. 4. Duration to assessment is the total amount of time in minutes between the patients’ arrival and their initial assessment in the A&E department. This is calculated as the difference in time from arrival at A&E to the time when the patient is initially assessed. 5. Duration to treatment is the total amount of time in minutes between the patients’ arrival and the start of their treatment. This is calculated as the difference in time from arrival at A&E to the time when the patient began treatment. 6. Duration to departure is total amount of time spent in minutes in an A&E department. This is calculated as the difference in time from arrival at A&E to the time when the patient is discharged from A&E care. This includes being admitted to hospital, dying in the department, discharged with no follow up or discharged and referred to another specialist department.

Drugs: Licensing

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking with NHS England and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to help local drugs and therapeutics networks to improve access to off-patent drugs.

George Freeman: Off-patent drugs are those whose patent period has expired and they are widely used in the National Health Service now. Drugs can also be prescribed ‘off-label’ outside of their licensed indication(s) to individual patients where doctors consider it is clinically appropriate to do so. Prescribing decisions are rightly a matter for clinicians in discussion with their patients.  We are in the process of setting up a round-table discussion with key stakeholders, including NHS England and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to explore opportunities for supporting appropriate use of off-label drugs outside their licensed indications where the evidence supports this.

Prescription Drugs

Mr David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many licences were sought for off-patent medicines in each of the last three years; and by whom each such licence was sought.

George Freeman: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for the regulation of medicines in the United Kingdom. Innovative medicines (new drugs or innovative presentations) are expected to be protected by patents to prevent them from being copied. MHRA does not have access to information on patents but is able to determine when the 10 year period of data exclusivity (protection) expires after a marketing authorisation for a substance of a product is first granted. After that time subsequent applicants are able to use the innovator product as a ‘reference medicinal product’ and submit abbreviated applications for the same or similar products in accordance with articles 10(1), 10(3) and 10(4) of directive 2001/83/EC on medicinal products for human use. These products are generally referred to as generic medicines or, (if they are biological medicines) biosimilar medicines.   Sub-article 10a provides for applications to be made for products which have been shown to be in well-established use for 10 years and sub-article 10c provides for applications where the holder of the original authorisation permits cross-referral in full to the set of original data.   In all these cases it is expected that the original patent would have expired but any patent challenge would take place independently and outside of the medicines licensing procedures.   Licensed off-patent medicines are not the same as off-label medicines. An “off-label” medicine is any medicine prescribed outside the terms of its licence (as set out in the prescribing information in the Summary of product Characteristics). Medicines legislation permits prescribers to prescribe a product outside the terms of its licence where they judge it to be in the best interests of the patient to address a medical need. For example to prescribe for a different use or to different category of patients but in doing so the prescriber takes personal responsibility for the treatment, inform the patient(s) of the licensing status of the product and obtain consent from the patient for its use.   The following tables and accompanying lists relate to applications received by MHRA under any of the provisions of article 10 of 2001/83/EC but may not be comprehensive lists as applications for off-patent products may also be made under other articles. The lists do not include products authorised through the centralised procedure of the European Medicines Agency.   Applications received by MHRA under Article 10 of 2001/83/EC   YearNumber of Applications received201294720138612014 to 19 November 20141007   In the accompanying lists full details are provided of the applications sought which have been granted or granted and subsequently cancelled. The totals at the bottom of each worksheet are the total number of product licenses. There are more rows of data than licences because products with multiple licensed product names or more than one active ingredient appear on more than one row. Pending, withdrawn and refused applications are excluded to protect commercial confidentiality. 



Applications to MHRA under Article 10 2014
(Excel SpreadSheet, 39 KB)




Applications to MHRA under Article 10 2013
(Excel SpreadSheet, 110 KB)




Applications to MHRA under Article 10 2012
(Excel SpreadSheet, 162 KB)

Pregnant Women: Screening

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many women (a) accepted and (b) refused biochemical serum screening in 2012.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The NHS Fetal Anomaly Screening Programme (FASP) offers screening to all pregnant women in England to assess the risk of a baby being born with Down’s syndrome or a number of fetal anomalies (structural abnormalities with how the fetus has developed). The decision to have a screening test is always a personal choice.   The first scan usually takes place between 10 to 14 weeks and includes a blood test for Down’s syndrome, known as biochemical serum screening. FASP do not collect or collate data at a national level for the uptake of screening for Down’s syndrome.   The Down’s Syndrome Screening Quality Assurance Support Service (DQASS), commissioned by Public Health England, can provide data at a national level on the number of completed screening tests for Down’s syndrome. The data for 2012 and 2013 are presented in the following table.   Biochemical serum screening tests completed in 2012 and 2013 YearFirst trimester testsSecond trimester testsIntegrated tests*Total2012455,995100,3713,796560,1622013468,17289,9592,892561,023 *Integrated tests are combined first and second trimester screening.

Diabetes

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how his Department judges which steps to raise diabetes awareness have been most effective.

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which organisations are primarily responsible for raising diabetes awareness; and whether they monitor their progress in doing so.

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, who is responsible for raising awareness of diabetes at the (a) national, (b) regional and (c) local level.

Jane Ellison: Public Health England (PHE), NHS England and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence all play a key role in raising awareness of diabetes at national level, while locally this is shared between public health, clinical commissioning groups and individual practitioners. Strategic Clinical Networks (SCNs) also have an important role to play in ensuring appropriate clinical advice to local commissioners and disseminating evidence about effectiveness.   Organisations such as Diabetes UK, Silver Star Diabetes, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the Association of British Clinical Diabetologists, also play a valuable and important part in raising the awareness of diabetes. Individual Members of Parliament and the All Party Parliamentary Group also raise awareness of diabetes on an ongoing basis.   There is evidence to support the effectiveness of brief interventions in raising awareness of the risks associated with obesity and diabetes as part of routine clinical interactions, but we are not aware of any analysis on the most effective ways of raising awareness of diabetes.   The NHS Health Check raises awareness of diabetes and its symptoms by assessing and discussing with participants the risk factors for this disease, along with other conditions relevant to the programme. PHE is responsible for supporting local authorities in implementing the NHS Check programme.   The social marketing programme Change4Life aims to help everyone in England to eat well, move more and live longer and in doing so contributes to tackling excess weight. Type 2 diabetes is used as an example of the potential consequences of inactivity/unhealthy diets in the Change4Life and Start4life campaigns.

Drinks: Sugar

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if the Government will take steps to ensure that supermarkets reduce sugar in drink products they sell to six teaspoons for every 200 ml glass, the maximum adult daily intake recommended by the World Health Organisation.

Jane Ellison: Through our voluntary partnership with industry, we have seen many supermarkets and soft drinks manufacturers take a range of actions to help their customers eat and drink fewer calories. This includes actions to reduce sugar in the drinks they produce and retail and to develop more no or low sugar options.   Businesses, comprising large and small manufacturers and the main supermarket chains and representing approximately two-thirds of the food and drink market, have agreed to adopt the United Kingdom front of pack nutrition labelling scheme. This will help people judge how much energy and nutrients, including sugar, they are eating and drinking and enable them to compare products and make healthier choices.   In June, the Scientific Advisory Committee Report on Nutrition published their draft recommendations on carbohydrates. The final report, together with advice from Public Health England on sugar in the diet, is due spring 2015. This will inform the Government’s future thinking on sugar.

Pneumococcal Disease: Vaccination

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2014 to Question 213785, whether the cost effectiveness modelling of the PPV programme developed by Public Health England will be made publicly available when it is presented to the pneumococcal disease sub-committee of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation in spring 2015.

Jane Ellison: The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) Pneumococcal Sub-committee will meet in spring 2015. At this meeting of the Pneumococcal Sub-committee members will begin their review of the impact and cost-effectiveness of the pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV) immunisation programme.   The mechanism by which the JCVI undertakes economic evaluations, including cost-effectiveness analyses, are described in the JCVI Codes of Practice. The JCVI may, when appropriate, publish additional information on parameters used in cost-effectiveness models in the minutes of Sub-Committee and main JCVI meetings. This applies particularly to parameters for which there may be a substantial degree of uncertainty. The JCVI does not make public details of cost-effectiveness modelling where this would compromise the Department of Health's vaccine procurement process or disclose information provided in confidence to the JCVI by vaccine manufacturers. Additional modelling information is likely to be made publicly available through peer-reviewed publications.

Drinks: Sugar

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if the Government will take steps to prevent drinks products with sugar content over the maximum adult daily intake recommended by the World Health Organisation being advertised (a) as healthy and (b) to children.

Jane Ellison: In June, the Scientific Advisory Committee Report on Nutrition published its draft recommendations on Carbohydrates. The final report, together with advice from Public Health England on sugar in the diet, is due in the spring. This will inform the Government’s future thinking on sugar.   Health claims used in advertising of food products are authorised under European legislation based on robust scientific evidence and public health considerations.   The advertising of food high in fat, sugars and salt to children is already regulated by codes of practice for the broadcast and non-broadcast spheres. A total ban is in place on the advertising of foods high in fat, salt and sugar during children’s television programmes, on dedicated children’s broadcast channels and in television programmes “of particular appeal” to children under the age of 16.

Breast Cancer

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to ensure the routine availability of bisphosphonates to reduce the risk of breast cancer spreading to the bone in post-menopausal women.

George Freeman: Research led by the University of Sheffield on the effects of bisphosphonate treatment on recurrence and cause-specific mortality in women with early breast cancer was presented in 2013. We understand that NHS England’s Breast Cancer Clinical Reference Group plans to incorporate this research into guidance it will be publishing in 2015.

Hospitals: Admissions

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many admissions to hospital for cold-related illnesses of people aged (a) 0 to 14 years, (b) 15 to 19 years, (c) 20 to 64 years and (d) 65 and over there have been in each of the last 10 years.

Jane Ellison: This information is not available in the format requested. The Health and Social Care Information Centre has advised that the term 'cold-related illness' is too broad to be indexed in the classification system used within the Hospital Episode Statistics database.

Prescription Drugs

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department has spent on licensed drugs in each of the last four years.

George Freeman: Information on National Health Service expenditure on drugs is in the table. It is not possible to determine if a drug is prescribed within its licensed indication as information on the condition for which a drug is prescribed is not available.   YearPrimary Care1£mSecondary Care2£mTotal£m2010-118,2804,25712,5372011-128,2434,48212,7252012-137,8875,05512,9422013-148,0155,32413,339 Sources:   Primary care figures are from primary care trusts’ audited summarisation schedules and Department of Health annual accounts. Secondary care figures are from NHS trusts’ finance returns and Foundation Trust year-end accounts.   Notes:  1 Primary care figures include amounts paid to pharmacy and appliance contractors by the NHS Business Services Authority and amounts authorised for dispensing doctors and personal administration in England. The data include the cost of dressings and appliances but do not cover costs for drugs prescribed in hospital but dispensed in the community or private prescriptions. 2 Secondary care expenditure on drugs includes medical gases. Drugs prescribed in hospitals but dispensed in the community are also included.

Muscular Dystrophy

Sir Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to (a) ensure that emerging treatments for Duchenne muscular dystrophy which receive conditional approval are available through the Early Access to Medicines Scheme as early as possible and (b) encourage flexible approaches to the licensing process for potential new treatments for rare conditions.

George Freeman: The Early Access to Medicines Scheme (EAMS) aims to give patients with life threatening or seriously debilitating conditions access to medicines that do not yet have a marketing authorisation when there is a clear unmet medical need. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for the scientific aspects of the scheme and the scientific opinion will be provided after a two-step evaluation process: - step I, the promising innovative medicine (PIM) designation - step II, the early access to medicines scientific opinion The PIM designation will give an indication that a product may be eligible for the EAMS (based on early clinical data) and that the development programme is on track. The PIM designation will be issued after an MHRA scientific meeting and could be given several years before the product is licensed. The scheme is voluntary and the opinion from MHRA does not replace the normal licensing procedures for medicines.   There have been no applications from companies with products for Duchene Muscular Dystrophy.   The opinion will support the prescriber and patient to make a decision on whether to use the medicine before its licence is approved. The EAMS scientific opinion is valid for one year in the first instance and lapses at this time or at the time of the grant of a marketing authorisation e.g. conditional marketing authorisation.   For certain categories of medicines going through the centralised marketing authorisation procedure (European procedure), in order to meet unmet medical needs of patients and in the interest of public health, it may be necessary to grant marketing authorisations on the basis of less complete data than is normally required. In such cases, it is possible to recommend the granting of a marketing authorisation subject to certain specific obligations to be reviewed annually, a conditional approval. The granting of a conditional marketing authorisation will allow medicines to reach patients with unmet medical needs earlier than might otherwise be the case.   A conditional marketing authorisation for the first in class medicinal product Translarna (ataluren) was granted this year. Translarna is an orphan medicinal product that is used to treat patients aged 5 years and older with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) who are able to walk. Translarna is expected to slow down the loss of walking ability in DMD patients. As part of the conditional marketing authorisation, the company will be required to provide comprehensive data on the efficacy of Translarna from an ongoing confirmatory study. Rare diseases are classified as conditions affecting no more than 5 in 10,000 people in European Union and patients with rare conditions deserve the same quality, safety and efficacy in medicines as other patients with more common conditions. Since the pharmaceutical industry has little interest, under normal market conditions, in developing and marketing medicines intended for small numbers of patients (orphan medicinal products), the European Union offers a range of incentives to encourage the development of these medicines in order to address the unmet clinical need (orphan drug legislation, Regulation (EC) No 141/2000). These incentives include a period of 10 years market exclusivity, the provision of Protocol Assistance (scientific advice specifically tailored for orphan medicinal products) and fee reductions and waivers for regulatory procedures.   Applications for the designation of orphan medicines are reviewed by the European Medicines Agency through the Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products (COMP). For orphan designation, the following criteria must be fulfilled. The medicinal product is intended for the diagnosis, prevention or treatment of a life-threatening or chronically debilitating condition affecting no more than 5 in 10,000 persons in the European Union or without incentives it is unlikely that expected sales of the medicinal product would cover the investment in its development and no satisfactory method of diagnosis, prevention or treatment of the condition concerned is authorised, or, if such method exists, the medicinal product will be of significant benefit to those affected by the condition. Via the MHRA, the United Kingdom takes an active role in the decision making process at the COMP, ensuring applications for Orphan Drug designation of potential drug candidates for rare diseases are appropriately recognised, encouraging companies to develop their products further. For licensing, it is compulsory for designated orphan medicinal products to use the centralised procedure to gain a marketing authorisation.   The UK is fully represented at the CHMP, ensuring that applications for a Marketing Authorisation (MA) for an Orphan Drug are thoroughly and rapidly evaluated for quality, safety and efficacy and a MA is granted without undue delay for the treatment of rare diseases.   In some circumstances, marketing authorisations may undergo a more rapid regulatory review called ‘accelerated assessment’. This occurs where the Applicant can demonstrate that the medicinal product is expected to be of major public health interest (particularly from the point of view of therapeutic innovation). For drugs for rare diseases, marketing authorisation applications may be granted as a conditional authorisation or an authorisation under exceptional circumstances. The granting of a conditional marketing authorisation allow medicines to reach patients with unmet medical needs earlier than might otherwise be the case, and ensures that additional data on a product are generated, submitted, assessed and acted upon. Under exceptional circumstances, the MA Applicant must demonstrate that he is unable to provide comprehensive data on the efficacy and safety under normal conditions of use, because, for example, the indications for which the product in question is intended are encountered so rarely that the Applicant cannot reasonably be expected to provide comprehensive evidence.   We are commissioning a major external review of the pathways for the development, assessment, and adoption of innovative medicines and medical technology. This review will consider how to speed up access for NHS patients to cost-effective new diagnostics, medicines and devices.

Cancer: Drugs

Eric Ollerenshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects NHS England to publish the second quarter figures for Cancer Drugs Fund notifications and individual Cancer Drugs Fund requests for 2014-15; and if he will make a statement.

George Freeman: NHS England published quarter two 2014-15 Cancer Drugs Fund figures on its website on 19 November 2014. Further information is available at:   www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/pe/cdf/   Since October 2010, over 60,000 patients in England have benefitted from the Cancer Drugs Fund.

Prescription Drugs

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to encourage flexibility in the licensing process for potential new treatments for rare conditions.

George Freeman: Most new medicines for rare conditions are licensed by the European Commission. The European Union offers a range of incentives to encourage the development of these medicines in order to address unmet clinical need. These incentives include a period of 10 years market exclusivity, the provision of Protocol Assistance (scientific advice specifically tailored for orphan medicinal products) and fee reductions and waivers for regulatory procedures.   Through the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the United Kingdom takes an active role in the decision making process at the European Medicines Agency’s Committee on Orphan Medicinal Products, ensuring applications for Orphan Drug designation of potential drug candidates for rare diseases are appropriately recognised, encouraging companies to develop their products further and recommending use of existing flexibilities such as conditional authorisation, authorisation under exceptional circumstances and accelerated assessment. The UK is actively involved in the European Medicines Agency’s adaptive licensing pilot that is exploring further use of these flexibilities. The MHRA has an Innovation Office that can offer advice and assistance to developers of drugs for rare diseases, including on the use of flexibilities.   In addition, in the UK, the Early Access to Medicines Scheme aims to give patients with life threatening or seriously debilitating conditions access to medicines that do not yet have a marketing authorisation when there is a clear unmet medical need.   We are also commissioning an external review of the pathways for the development, assessment, and adoption of innovative medicines and medical technology. This review will consider how to speed up access for NHS patients to cost-effective new diagnostics, medicines and devices.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department has had (a) discussions and (b) correspondence with the Medical Research Council on its level of funding for research on the biomedical causes of ME in the last 12 months.

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what research his Department has commissioned on the causes of ME in the last three years.

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of potential links between abnormalities in the immune system and ME.

George Freeman: No assessment has been made of the potential links between abnormalities in the immune system and myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME). However, we are aware of at least one small study involving 30 patients that suggested the immune system may have a role to play in the development of ME.   The Department has commissioned no research in the last three years on the causes of ME and has had no specific discussions or correspondence with the Medical Research Council (MRC) on its level of funding for research on the biomedical causes of ME in the last 12 months.   The MRC, which is an independent body funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, has identified research into CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome)/ME as a research priority and the Council has implemented a number of initiatives to stimulate high quality research in this area. The MRC's current priorities for this area are outlined in a highlight notice, which can be found on its website at:   http://www.mrc.ac.uk/funding/how-we-fund-research/highlight-notices/cfsme-highight-notice/   The MRC does not commission research but in 2011 issued a targeted call for proposals to help increase the understanding of the mechanisms of the condition and £1.65 million was awarded to support five research projects addressing a number of priorities in CFS/ME research identified by the research community.   The MRC welcomes applications on all aspects of human health from the research community and proposals compete for the funding available. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the scientific quality of the proposals submitted.

Drugs: Licensing

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will set targets and goals for speeding up the use of off-patent drugs outside their licensed indications, where evidence supports that use.

George Freeman: We have no plans to set such targets or goals.   Off-patent drugs are those whose patent period has expired and they are widely used in the National Health Service now. Drugs can also be prescribed ‘off-label’ outside of their licensed indication(s) to individual patients where doctors consider it is clinically appropriate to do so. Prescribing decisions are rightly a matter for clinicians in discussion with their patients.   We are in the process of setting up a round-table discussion with key stakeholders, including NHS England and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to explore opportunities for supporting appropriate use of off-label drugs outside their licensed indications where the evidence supports this.

Medical Equipment

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department has received any representations on problems encountered by users of continence products in obtaining such products due to restrictive practices from wholesalers and the introduction of off-script supply.

Norman Lamb: To date there have not been any representation regarding problems with obtaining continence products due to restrictive practices from wholesalers and the introduction of off-script supply. However there has been representation on the development of continence products.   There is recognition that there is a need for nationwide improvements in continence care and this has led to the Continence Care Programme which is aligned with the national Compassion in Practice Strategy.   NHS England is leading this national programme.

Medical Equipment

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will discuss with NHS England the potential merits of dispensing appliance contractor licences on a national basis rather than through local health and wellbeing board areas.

George Freeman: I refer the Hon. Member to the Answer I gave on 11 November 2014 to Question 213273.

Fractures

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will estimate the overall cost of linking a Fracture Liaison Service to every hospital in England.

Norman Lamb: The provision of fracture liaison services (FLS) is a matter for local clinical commissioning groups.   Whilst programme budgeting data provides figures for annual National Health Service spend on musculoskeletal services in England, the cost of treating individual musculoskeletal conditions, such as osteoporosis, or specific services such as linking a FLS to every hospital in England, is not available as part of this data.

Diabetes

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what guidance he has issued to NHS England and clinical commissioning groups on ensuring that diabetes receives adequate prioritisation amongst other long-term conditions.

Jane Ellison: Enhancing the quality of life of the 15 million people in England with long term conditions, including diabetes, is a priority for NHS England. It is an objective for NHS England under the Mandate from the Government to make measurable progress towards making the National Health Service among the best in Europe at supporting people with ongoing health problems to live healthily and independently, with much better control over the care they receive. This includes all people with diabetes. Diabetes is relevant to all five domains in the NHS Outcomes Framework. In conjunction with the Mandate, the Outcomes Framework is the primary accountability mechanism between the Secretary of State for Health and NHS England and drives up quality throughout the NHS by encouraging a change in culture and behaviour focused on health outcomes not process.

Carers

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent steps he has taken to improve the support provided to carers; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Lamb: We have ensured that carers are central to our proposals for care and support reform. The provisions in the Care Act focus on the carer in their own right. For the first time, local authorities have a duty to meet carers’ eligible support needs and to consider the impact of their caring responsibilities when undertaking an assessment.   We have also ensured that young carers and parent carers of disabled children are supported. Through the provisions of the Children and Families Act, their assessments will be on the same footing as adults caring for adults.   We have provided £400 million to the National Health Service over four years from 2011 for carers to have breaks from their caring responsibilities. The 2015-16 tranche of this funding (£130 million) will be part of the Better Care Fund.   On 30 October 2014, the Government published an updated action plan for the national Carers Strategy, setting out progress since 2010 and priorities for the next two years through to 2016.   Carers are also central to the work that NHS England is leading to improve the quality of life of people with long term conditions. Their action plan NHS England’s Commitment to Carers includes a series of commitments around eight priorities, including raising the profile of carers.

Parkinson's Disease

Mr David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will publish the minutes of Clinical Priorities Advisory Group meetings relating to Duodopa.

George Freeman: Matters concerning the Clinical Priorities Advisory Group (CPAG) are for NHS England. We understand that NHS England is currently considering whether it will publish the minutes of CPAG meetings.

Parkinson's Disease

Mr David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions his Department has had with (a) NHS England and (b) external stakeholders on access to Duodopa for people with Parkinson's disease.

George Freeman: We have had no such discussions.

Parkinson's Disease

Mr David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many complaints NHS England received regarding individual funding requests for Parkinson's disease medication in the last 12 months.

George Freeman: NHS England has advised that it has received two complaints relating to individual funding requests for Parkinson’s disease medicines in the last 12 months.

Ebola

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people have been screened for the Ebola virus in the UK following the recent implementation of screening procedures.

Jane Ellison: As at 23:59 on 17 November, a total of 931 passengers had been assessed at ports with enhanced screening operations.

Ebola

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, where screening for the Ebola virus is taking place in the UK.

Jane Ellison: Enhanced screening operations are in place at London Heathrow, London Gatwick, Birmingham and Manchester airports, and London St Pancras train station. Entry screening at these ports is estimated to cover 97% of through ticketed arrivals from affected countries.   Other ports of entry are covered remotely when Border Force notify of passengers travelling to the United Kingdom on indirect flights. Similarly, ships are met at ports when we have been informed of their arrival in advance, and they have docked in a country of interest within the last 21 days.

West Africa: Ebola

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what procedures beyond initial screening exist to ensure that people entering the UK from West Africa are not carrying the Ebola virus.

Jane Ellison: Anyone flying from an affected country in West Africa is subject to exit screening overseen by the World Health Organization, which prevents those with symptoms consistent with Ebola from flying. All those who are assessed at screening in the United Kingdom as being at high risk because of their exposure history are asked to monitor their temperature twice daily and report this on a daily basis to the local health protection team for 21 days from the date they left a country of interest (currently Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone). Those who are considered at low risk are asked to monitor their temperature twice daily and report any rise in temperature to their local health protection team. As requested, local health protection teams will also follow up with particular individuals.

Blood: Contamination

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations or reports his Department has received from the (a) Caxton Foundation, (b) Macfarlane Trust and (c) Eileen Trust or those organisations' trustees on (i) the needs of their beneficiaries, (ii) the support available to trust beneficiaries and (iii) the take-up of discretionary and non-discretionary support.

Jane Ellison: Each year, the Department receives the Annual Report and Accounts from the Caxton Foundation, Macfarlane Trust and Eileen Trust. The Department also holds an annual review meeting with each charity each year, usually including representatives from the Board of Trustees and executive. Through the Annual Report and the annual review meetings, the charities highlight and discuss the needs of their beneficiaries, the support available or provided to their beneficiaries and the take-up of the discretionary support that they provide.   During this Parliament, the Department received proposals from the Caxton Foundation and Macfarlane Trust for increased funding for 2014-15, and also received a proposal from the Macfarlane Trust in November 2012 concerning the use of their reserve. In addition, from time to time, the Department receives correspondence and telephone calls from the charities about the needs of their beneficiaries, the support available to them and the take-up of the discretionary support the charities provide.   The Caxton Foundation, Macfarlane Trust and Eileen Trust do not provide any non-discretionary support.

Health Services: Children

Stuart Andrew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress has been made in training every GP and GP nurse in child physical and mental health.

Dr Daniel Poulter: It is the responsibility of the professional regulators to set the standards and content for education and training and ensure newly qualified doctors and nurses are equipped with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide high quality patient care.   Health Education England also has the role of ensuring the National Health Service workforce has high quality education and training to deliver the highest possible quality of care and is continuing its work with the Children and Young People’s Health Outcomes Forum to identify key training issues to improve the care of young people with physical or mental health issues during transition from childhood to adolescence.

Health Services: Children

Stuart Andrew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make it his policy to introduce a named doctor or health professional for every child with a long-term condition.

Dr Daniel Poulter: We have announced that from 1 April 2015, the general practitioner (GP) contract will require GP practices to assign all registered patients, including children with long-term conditions, a named GP who will be responsible for co-ordinating their care.

Blood: Contamination

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many lump sum payments of £43,500 (a) have been made by MFET Ltd and (b) were made by MSPT1 and MSPT2 to the estates of people who contracted HIV following treatment with NHS blood products but who died before the lump sum payments scheme was established.

Jane Ellison: Records held in the Department indicate that no payments of £43,500 were made to the estates of HIV infected individuals, since MFET Ltd was first established.   Under the Macfarlane Special Payments Trust (MSPT) and the Macfarlane Special Payments Trust No2 (MSPT2), no single lump sum payments of £43,500 were made. However, a combination of the £20,000 lump sum payment under MSPT and one of a range of payment levels under MSPT2 of £23,500 would mean that some individuals may have received a payment from each of the two schemes, totalling £43,500.

Blood: Contamination

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, before what date a person infected with HIV has to have received treatment with NHS blood products in order to qualify for registration with (a) MFET Ltd and (b) the Eileen Trust.

Jane Ellison: The Department’s policy is that MFET Ltd and the Eileen Trust are for people infected prior to the introduction of heat-treatment of blood products (a process which inactivates HIV) and an HIV screening test for blood donation, both of which occurred in 1985.

Health Services: Children

Stuart Andrew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will extend the patient survey of young people in inpatient settings to cover outpatient and community settings.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is currently undertaking a national survey of the experiences of children and young people who have experienced inpatient or daycase services in acute settings for the first time. They expect to publish the results of that survey in spring 2015 and will evaluate it fully at that time.   Depending on the outcome of that review, and in discussion with key stakeholder groups, CQC will determine whether to undertake the survey in future years and whether similar surveys should be developed to understand the experiences of children and young people elsewhere within the health and social care system.   This is in line with the recommendations from Dr Sheila Shribman in her report, Getting it right for children and young people. Dr Shribman was commissioned by Professor Sir Mike Richards, CQC’s Chief Inspector of Hospitals, to advise on how CQC inspects hospital services for children and young people including stand-alone specialist children’s hospitals.

Health Services: Children

Stuart Andrew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will develop a Mortality Plan aimed at reducing the number of preventable child deaths in England.

Dr Daniel Poulter: Deaths in infants, children and young people are falling, but not as fast as in comparable countries. The Government is tackling this. In 2013 we issued a system-wide pledge, signed by all major health organisations to deliver the system-wide change needed to improve health outcomes for children and young people, and reduce preventable child deaths.   We set up an independent group of experts, the Children and Young People’s Health Outcomes Forum, to advise and challenge us on what we must do to improve children’s health. We have taken action based on their advice to improving prevention, early intervention and healthcare to improving health outcomes for children and young people.   The Department is working with a range of key partners, including NHS England, Public Health England, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the Royal College of Midwives, on a programme of work to reduce stillbirths and neonatal deaths. This includes raising awareness of the known risk factors, improving identification of babies at risk and improving perinatal reviews.

Clinical Psychologists

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that a sufficient number of clinical psychologists is available to meet the needs of the NHS.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The Department set up Health Education England (HEE) to deliver a better health and healthcare workforce for England. HEE is responsible for ensuring a secure workforce supply for the future balancing need against demand, taking into account factors such as the age profile of the existing workforce, the impact of technology, and new drugs.   Investment in the education and training of clinical psychologists is part of the mainstream workforce planning cycle that is set out in the HEE Workforce Planning Guidance published in April. HEE’s Workforce Plan sets out how they will ensure that sufficient clinical psychologists are available.

Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many (a) consultants, (b) registrars, (c) other doctors and (d) nurse practitioners were employed in accident and emergency roles by Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals Trust in each of the last five years.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The number of medical and dental staff and qualified nursing staff working in accident and emergency¹ in Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust over the last five years is shown in the following table.  full time equivalent September 2009September 2010September 2011September 2012September 2013 July 2014All HCHS doctors3545454950 47Consultant910101214 15Registrar Group1422202222 21Other doctors1213151614 12Qualified nursing staff7369726869 77   Source: Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC), Provisional NHS Hospital and Community Health Service (HCHS) monthly workforce statistics   Notes: The Area of Work reproduced here is that submitted by individual NHS organisations and not subject to the types of validation procedures undertaken by HSCIC for data in official publications. As such, these figures should be treated with a degree of caution.All figures exclude Locums.Full time equivalent figures are rounded to the nearest whole number.These statistics relate to the contracted positions within English NHS organisations and may include those where the person assigned to the position is temporarily absent, for example on maternity leave.

Ebola

Mr Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much the NHS (a) has spent and (b) plans to spend on tackling Ebola in (i) Sierra Leone, (ii) the UK and (iii) elsewhere in this financial year.

Jane Ellison: The information on the spend on Ebola by the National Health Service as a whole is not held centrally. However, NHS England is currently undertaking a full appraisal of the potential financial impact of Ebola on the NHS, and have a number of impact workshops planned.   The NHS has not incurred any cost in Sierra Leone or in enabling staff to work in Sierra Leone.

NHS

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which (a) accident and emergency departments, (b) NHS trusts, (c) NHS foundation trusts and (d) mental health trusts he has visited in an official capacity in (i) 2013-14 and (ii) 2014-15 to date.

Dr Daniel Poulter: The Department of Health has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer to Question 213815, what steps the Government is taking to reduce the proportion of eligible discharges which are not followed up within seven days.

Norman Lamb: Commissioning non-specialist mental health services, including seven-day follow-up, is the responsibility of clinical commissioning groups.   The NHS Standard Contract requires providers to achieve 95% compliance with Care Programme Approach follow-up within seven days of discharge, on a quarterly basis. A financial sanction is available under the Contract which a commissioner must apply when a provider breaches this standard. The Contract offers a range of other approaches through which the commissioner can hold the provider to account and ensure that performance is improved for instance by agreeing and implementing a Remedial Action Plan.

Health Professions: Standards

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which medical professionals are required to undergo re-certification or re-validation; and how often each such group of professionals are required to undergo such re-certification or re-validation.

Dr Daniel Poulter: All health professionals have processes in place to ensure continuing professional development and that they keep up to date on the most current practices relevant to them. Only doctors have a formal revalidation structure in place at present. All doctors wanting to hold a licence to practise medicine in the United Kingdom must participate in medical revalidation. Licensed doctors must have annual appraisals based on the General Medical Council’s core guidance for doctors, Good Medical Practice. These annual appraisals are fed into the revalidation process which takes place every five years.

Drugs: Licensing

Mr David Nuttall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills in the debate on the Second Reading of the Off-patent Drugs Bill on 7 November 2014, Official Report, column 1124, what the evidential basis was of his statement that the resorting to legislation to demand regulatory measures carries the risk of some serious and unintended consequences.

George Freeman: The law currently allows medicines to be prescribed outside their licensed indications or without a licence provided that this best meets the individual clinical need of the patient concerned. The Off Patent Drugs Bill risks creating a presumption that a licence must be in place for every indication for which a medicine is to be used, removing the flexibility clinicians currently have to prescribe the medicine which best meets their patients clinical needs whatever it licensing status. This would create uncertainty for patients and clinicians and could disrupt important areas of care. For example, many medicines have historically not been licensed for use in children.   My Rt. hon Friend, the Secretary of State for Health, is responsible for the United Kingdom medicines licensing system and therefore for its operation and integrity. If he became a regular applicant for licences there would be a perceived conflict of interest between his role as an applicant competing in the medicines market and his role as an impartial overseer of the system. If he directed another body to make licence applications on his behalf we judge that this could incur similar risks.

Drugs: Licensing

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what consultation with GPs he undertook when developing his position on the Off-patent Drugs Bill.

George Freeman: In developing our response, we have taken advice from clinicians and officials at NHS England, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, and taken account of views expressed by other stakeholder organisations.

Drugs: Licensing

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many NHS patients were prescribed off-patent drugs outside their licensed indications in (a) 2013, (b) 2012 and (c) 2011.

George Freeman: It is not possible to determine if a drug is prescribed within its licensed indication as information on the condition for which a drug is prescribed by a clinician to his/her patient is not recorded.

Chemicals: Safety

Mr Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will review the safety of the anti-bacterial agent Tricolsan; if he will place in the Library copies of reports his Department has received on the safety of this chemical in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

George Freeman: Triclosan is an antimicrobial agent that is present as an active ingredient in some pharmaceutical products, such as antiseptic skin solutions and medicinal toothpastes. As with all medicinal products, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) keeps the safety of triclosan-containing pharmaceuticals under continual review. The view of the MHRA is that the balance of risks and benefits of such products continues to be favourable. The MHRA is unaware of any new data relevant to humans to alter this view.   Triclosan has also been used for more than 35 years in a wide range of consumer products for its antiseptic, disinfectant and preservative properties. This includes some soaps, cosmetics, detergents, shampoos, toothpastes and mouth washes.

Pregnancy: Screening

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether guidance has been issued to NHS trusts on the provision of Doppler scans to all pregnant women; and how many NHS hospitals routinely provide Doppler scans to pregnant women.

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies research carried out by Professor Kypros Nicolaides into Doppler scans and their potential to cut the number of stillbirths; and if he will make a statement.

Dr Daniel Poulter: Current National Institute for Health and Care Excellence clinical guidelines on antenatal care recommend that routine doppler ultrasound scans should not be used in low risk pregnancies.   Information on the number of National Health Service hospitals that routinely provide doppler scans to pregnant women is not collected centrally.   The UK National Screening Committee advises Ministers and the NHS in all four countries about all aspects of screening policy. The Committee’s secretariat is currently scoping an evidence review on the practicality of a screening programme for the prevention of intrauterine growth restriction and subsequent stillbirth. This is a complicated issue and the scope will address a range of approaches and tests, including that proposed by Professor Nicolaides.

Women and Equalities

Castes

Mark Durkan: To ask the Ministers for Women and Equalities, what representations she has received on the timetable for the amendment of the definition of race to include caste in the Equality Act 2010.

Jo Swinson: Since July 2013 when the timetable was published, the government has received a number of representations from MPs, Peers, organisations and individuals. These representations have concerned whether the timetable should go ahead as well as the length of time required to implement the various stages it contains. Representations from organisations in particular have included both those in favour of and those opposed to the introduction of legislation.